Omega
by CupcakeSprinkles14
Summary: AU: Alpha/Beta/Omega: Peeta was the only omega wolf in the 12 pack. Constantly harassed and played with by other members of the pack, he has never felt like he has truly belonged. When a different pack leader wanders into 12 territory and decides to stake a claim on him, Peeta feels what it's like to bend the rules. And it feels good. Omega!Peeta and Alpha!Cato.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So guys, it's happened, I've began writing a supernatural Peetato fic. I would like to thank **_**DragonisNight**_** for giving me the idea for this. Seriously, I would never have thought of doing this without your help! ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games or the idea of wolf Alpha/Beta/Omega ranks.**

**Warnings: Submission and Dominance. A touch of self harm.**

_A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse or affliction (e.g. via a bite or scratch from another werewolf). Early sources for belief in lycanthropy are Petronius and Gervase of Tilbury._

_The werewolf is a widespread concept in European folklore, existing in many variants which are related by a common development of a Christian interpretation of underlying Indo-European mythology which developed during the medieval period. From the early modern period, werewolf beliefs also spread to the New World with colonialism. Belief in werewolf develops parallel to the belief in witches, in the course of the Late Middle Ages and the Early Modern period._

_Some modern researchers have tried to explain the reports of werewolf behaviour with recognised medical conditions. Dr Lee Illis of Guy's Hospital in London wrote a paper in 1963 entitled On Porphyria and the Aetiology of Werewolves, in which he argues that historical accounts on werewolves could have in fact been referring to victims of congenital porphyria, stating how the symptoms of photosensitivity, reddish teeth and psychosis could have been grounds for accusing a sufferer of being a werewolf._

~xXx~

Running was great. Blazing through the forest with a burst of speed, jumping logs, snapping twigs, thundering past trees and foilage as if nothing else mattered other than running. Wind bristling through fur, whistling past delicate ears, carrying the rustic scent of the trees with it to tickle sensitive noses. Paws pounding the compact earth, unsettling the soil and leaves around it.

Yes, Peeta could run forever.

He perferred wolf form. He felt free and unchained, like nothing could stop him. There was no limits when he was in wolf form, nothing to stop him, nothing to prevent him from running for eternity.

He ran on his own, that was the price of being what he was. He didn't mind, since all the other wolves just wanted to play with the helpless little Omega wolf. Being the only omega in the pack, it was difficult to be around them anyway, natural instincts being to keen and beg for attention.

There were 12 wolf packs spread out across Panem. Peeta was part of pack 12, who are located in the outskirts of the country. Packs don't mix, they stay within their zones. It was against pack law for different wolves from different packs to interact and could be punishable by death so they stayed within their respected zones.

The packs worked like this: there was a leader. Leaders are always alphas, the dominant members of the pack. They keep all wolves in their pack at bay, making sure they obey the rules and giving out punishments to those who don't. There are many alphas but only one leader. If another wolf kills the leader, they automatically become the leader of the pack. Females were not leaders and it was rare for there to be female alphas. Peeta heard that there was a couple in different packs but there wasn't any in 12.

Beta was the next rank. Betas weren't anything special. They varied between males and females and were very basic pack members. They took care of medicore jobs and were standard citizens. They weren't looked down on by other pack members but they didn't have the authority of alphas.

Then came the Omegas. Mostly females, Omegas were the most submissive and complaint of the wolves. They had a quick reaction to other wolves which was to keen for attention. There was a reflex inside them, a fire that could only be quenched by being dominated by another. They could sometimes be viewed as the sluts of the packs because even if a wolf looked at them in a funny way, they would turn on their backs and spread their legs. It was just how they worked. They were child carriers. Sex toys. Wolves to be used and abused by anyone. Anyone, that is, until they are mated.

This was why Peeta perferred being on his own. Being the only male Omega that had happened upon 12 in centuries, the betas and alphas liked taking advantage. It had been a dramatic change. For most of his life, he had been his own person, always able to come up with a snarky response to comments he didn't like and always ready to put up a fight. And then all of a sudden he turned sixteen and changed into a smipering Omega. It was ridiculously sick.

The first person he'd submitted to had been a wolf in his pack, Gale Hawthorne. Thankfully, the Beta didn't bite his neck, which was how wolves became mates. It was rare when a pack would get a male Omega so the Betas took advantage of it since they didn't know what it felt like to be the dominant ones unless they had an Omega to play with. Peeta hated himself for what he had changed into but there was no preventing or cure for it, he was stuck with it.

When he ran, it felt like he was running from them, running from himself, running from the ranks. It was nice to entertain the idea that he could run away from it all. But he always eventually had to stop, turn around and seek out the others. He couldn't even get lost because his rare scent would always cause them to find him. It made it all even more terrifying because when he _didn't_ find his way back on his own, it became a race between the others over who could find him first.

The worst of it was, when it came down to it, he _wanted_ them to do it. He had became the basic equavilant of a masochist whore.

If he didn't comply to what they wanted from him, he would be consumed with this cripppling guilt that would only be lifted if he got reprimanded for it. The amount of times he'd nuzzled himself up against someone in apology, begging to be hit, made him sick.

Peeta growled and ran faster. He nearly ran into a tree once or twice but managed to dodge them with ease. Running got him excited and his tail wagged gleefully as he went. He loved the freedom, how he wasn't dependant on anyone to help him, that there was no one there to force him to melt into his simpering, pathetic self who'd roll over and keen for attention.

An unfamiliar scent made him come to a skidding halt. He stopped and sniffed the air, pulling back his ears and narrowing his eyes. The 12 pack members smelt like the bark of an evergreen tree whereas this was an oak scent. It wasn't an oaktree because it was mixed with the smell of sweat and flesh as well. A wolf from a different pack, maybe? Oh gods, that wasn't good. Had he accidenly ran into different territory? Wolves could instantly tell if there was an alien presence in their zone, maybe they were coming to get him for trespassing.

Deciding to backtrack, Peeta turned around and started going back in the direction he came. The others were probably looking for him anyway. It wasn't too difficult to find his way back to camp, immediately going to his tent and shifting back into human form and pulling clothes on before the others came back. It was better that he got back before them anyway, Omegas were supposed to stay in camp while the others were hunting.

The only Omegas in 12 were himself and his friend Delly Cartwright. The difference between himself and Delly was that Delly had a mate. Once you had a mate no one could play with you other than your mate. So Delly was a stay at home mother, caring for the pups while the others were gone.

The others came back with a satisfying haul. Two deers and an antelope. The alphas ate first, then the betas and the Omegas got the scraps. Scraps weren't that bad and Peeta liked to entertain the idea that it was better than the first hand meat. Delly and himself would sit apart from the others, splitting the scraps between each other. Delly would occasionally twitch when someone walked past, since being mated her self control being much more refined. She was a good friend, Delly was. While they ate, she would slap him any time someone passed, knowing what it felt like to have the urge to roll over, and was always able to help pull himself together.

The alpha of the pack-Warren Undersee-later made an announcement that earlier in the day, there had been an intruder in their territory. Peeta sat up at the news, remembering the scent he had smelt earlier. Oak trees. Would Warren know what that meant? He couldn't tell him though because then he would know that he had went out running when he was supposed to be staying in camp with Delly and would very likely be punished for it.

Later, in his tent, Gale came to see him. Gale was a nice guy but was power hungry, that was why he always favoured the company of Peeta. It was common for a beta to want to spend time with an Omega because they never got to be dominant. They weren't allowed to be dominant with each other and they definitely weren't allowed to do it with alphas.

"Hey Peeta," he said, standing in the threshold of his tent.

"Hey Gale," Peeta replied. He twitched when Gale entered, having the desperate urge to lay down at his feet and whine. Even when not in wolf form, pack members had the habit of acting like a canine in their actions. "How are you?"

"About to go out to hunt down the intruder with the others," Gale answered. "Just thought I should come and see you before I left." He reached out and patted Peeta's head, relishing the way he would automatically nuzzle his head into his hand. He looked down on him with a gaze as sharp as a knife.

The ground called to him like a magnet and before he'd really realized it, Peeta had gotten down on all fours and rolled over onto his back. Gale chuckled and knelt down beside him, rubbing his throat with his thumb. Peeta whined and shifted forward, resting his chin on his leg. Gale kneaded the muscles in his back, running his spare hand through his hair affectionately.

Eck. He hated how much he loved it.

Gale licked the side of his face affectionately. Peeta moaned and bared his neck to him like the submissive tramp he was. Gale nipped at the vulnerable skin, rubbing his stomach the way he knew he liked. When he got aggressive, Peeta frowned, squirming away from him. Gale had been wanting to mate him for a long time now but that's not what he wanted, knowing that he was only doing it because he wanted a pet Omega. "Gale, stop it," he said.

"Sssh, it's alright," Gale murmured, thinking that he was just getting unsettled. Peeta felt the Beta's canines scraping up his neck. The statement made him flush with rage and he pushed against him. He felt sick every time he was disobedient but he wasn't going to let Gale mate him. He hated the way everyone thought that Omegas were idiots who didn't know what was going on and he wasn't going to let Gale bite him.

Peeta whimpered and wiggled out of his arms. He was hit by a wall of nausea and nearly passed out because of the intensity of it. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he growled softly, feeling the need to rub his head against the ground to get rid of Gale's saliva on his face. "I don't want to be mated," he whined.

Gale grabbed the scruff of his neck and pulled him back. His eyes flashed dangerously into the narrow slits of his canine form and Peeta recoiled pathetically. At least the pain at the back of his neck from his nails digging into his skin was quelling the sickness. "You're not supposed to want it, you're supposed to take it."

"You have a girlfriend," Peeta said in a tiny voice. "Mate her, not me."

"She's not an Omega."

Katniss, Gale's on off girlfriend, was a fellow beta who was waiting avidly for the day that Gale would bite her neck. She would walk around camp with several hickeys, none of them deep enough to express that she had been mated. It made Peeta feel all the more dirty for submitting to Gale. Katniss was a nice girl. She was kind and considerate and would always slip Delly and him extra scraps when she walked past. It made him wonder if she would understand if she found out about where her boyfriend disappeared to nearly every night.

"You're so much more than her," Gale insisted. At least he wasn't demanding. When Peeta said no, he _meant_ no and he respected that. "You could be my baby Omega."

"Don't you have a hunt to be getting to?" Peeta muttered. Another wave of nausea. He curled up on himself and nuzzled Gale's arm, sighing in relief when he tightened his grip on the scruff of his neck.

"Just one bite, that's all it would take," Gale said. He leaned forward until his breath huffed against his neck. Peeta moaned and arched his back into him, tilting his head back to expose himself to him again. His conscious didn't want to be bitten but his body did, his body was practically begging for it.

He nearly did it. It was so close. Peeta felt the sharp pinpricks of his fangs press into his neck. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, being mated by Gale. Then the other wolves would leave him alone, stop teasing him like he was nothing more than their pet. He inhaled, waiting for the blow to come.

But it didn't.

"Hey Gale!" someone from outside called, interuppting his actions. "Leave the little puppy alone and get your ass out here now!"

Sighing irritatably, Gale sat back. Disappointed but relieved, Peeta sighed as well, trying not to express to Gale how happy he was that he hadn't gotten the chance to bite him. Deciding it best to try and butter him up, he crouched down low and nudged his knee with his head. Smiling affectionately, Gale patted his head. "We'll continue this later."

When he left, Peeta jumped to his feet and slapped himself, rubbing his hands over his body and neck to get the feeling of Gale's hands off him. "Ew, ew, ew, ew," he said over and over again. Those hands had touched Katniss in the same way, those hands made love to her and made her believe she was special and the one. Peeta felt filthy. "EW!"

He crouched to the floor and slapped himself again, panting like a bitch in heat. "Get yourself together Mellark," he scolded himself. He'd be lucky to be mated by somone like Gale but . . . _Katniss_. No, he had to figure out a way to say no to Gale without getting ill. He placed his hands on the ground and slid forward, arching his back to crack some bones into place. He had to go for a run again before he started scratching himself.

When he felt bad enough, he'd scratch at himself, leaving little thin scratches on his arms and shins. Delly was the only person who noticed them, forever asking if he self harmed. He'd always say no. Because it was the truth. He didn't self harm, he only scratched himself a bit too hard sometimes. Only when he deserved it. Guilt made him itchy.

"Peeta?" Delly appeared in the threshold of his tent, holding the hand of Gale's younger sister Posy. "Are you okay? I saw Gale come out."

"Fine," Peeta muttered, cracking the bones in his neck.

Delly sighed. "You rolled over again, didn't you?" she asked.

"No," Peeta said sheepishly.

"Oh Peeta," Delly said quietly. "He's dating a girl."

"You think I don't know that!" Peeta snapped. "You know how hard it is Delly!"

Delly held her hands up in surrender. "Wow, watch it kid, I'm the only friend you've got right now who isn't after your hide. Yes, I know how hard it is, but I was able to control myself around those who had relationships. It was difficult, yes, but you need to remember where we stand around here. We can't afford mistakes. If Katniss found out what Gale does to you she wouldn't think twice about ripping your throat out."

"She wouldn't dare disobey Warren," Peeta replied. "You can't kill male omegas."

Delly quirked an eyebrow. "You can beat them," she answered. "And believe me, Katniss knows how to beat a wolf. She will make you roll over and probably kick the shit out of you until you're begging to have your throat ripped out. You may be a rarity Peeta but you're not invincible. This thing you have with Gale? It stops now."

"Delly, he nearly mated me," Peeta said seriously. "And I couldn't stop him. He insisted."

"God that wolf is such a man whore," Delly said, shaking her head.

"Man whore?" Posy repeated. Delly looked at the pup in alarm.

"Don't repeat that," she ordered. She turned her attention back to Peeta. "Just stay clear of Gale. He's trouble. Believe me, I know." Peeta raised his eyebrows at her. "What? I used to be just like you you know before Darius mated me. Gale used to rub my tummy too. Except he didn't want to mate me. I suppose he does gueninely want you but that's beside the point. He's with Katniss."

"I know that," Peeta said through gritted teeth, thoroughly irritated. "But if he tried to bite me again, I don't know if I could stop it."

Delly sighed. "Go for a run," she said, stepping out of the way of the tent threshold. "Clear your head." Nodding, Peeta left the tent. When he was about to walk in the direction of the outskirts of the forest-in the opposite direction of the rest of the pack-Delly grabbed his wrist. "And don't stratch," she pleaded. "You're fine."

He turned away, not promising anything, and ran off into the forest. Just as he hit the tree line, he leaped forward and morphed into his wolf form, landing on all fours and shaking his fur. He bounded off in a straight line, not in the right state of mind to bask in the rawness of nature like he normally would.

Gale frightened him. How easily he could manipulate him into his arms with caresses and licks of adoration. How close he had gotten to biting him, marking him and making him his. He wasn't even terrifying or dominant, he was just very clever in his form of devious calculation. He'd grown to know what he had liked and used that knowledge to have him on his back at his feet.

Peeta thought of Katniss. Of how she would smile at him when she'd slip him extra scraps, how she would scratch the spot behind his ear when she'd sit beside him by the campfire, how she was a lovely girl who only wanted to be loved and mated by her boyfriend. It made him feel even more disgusted in himself._ You're a slut, a whore, a fleebag who could do with a good kick up the ass._

He wasn't sure how long he had ran before it hit him again. Oak. He stopped and pushed his ears back, leaning up and sniffing the air. Yes, definitely the distinct smell of oak. But he was in a different part of the forest now. Could the intruder really have gotten so far in only a couple of hours?

His tail went automatically between his legs as the worst possible thoughts went through his head. Would they try to kill him? Maul him to bits because he was on his own and so very obviously a male omega? He crouched down low, ears flattened against his head, and stepped back fearfully.

Okay, he could turn around and get away quick. Maybe alert Delly that he knew where the intruder was. She could howl out to Darius, calling him back, and tell him and the other Betas in his group where to go.

That was when he saw it.

A large wolf stood a couple metres away, bold as brass. He was an obvious male, exuding confidence and dominance. It's blond hair bristled in the breeze as he stood stiff legged and tall, his ears erect and tail held vertical, curling towards his back. He was a pack leader. An alpha.

Peeta swallowed hard, trying to quieten his panting as he practically hugged the forest floor. As long as it didn't see him, he would be fine. It would move on and he would go back to camp and never leave the pack when he wasn't supposed to ever again. He'd get Delly to tell Darius where the intruder was and hide in silence, letting people use him as their toy whenever they wanted, letting Gale mate him if that was what he wished.

He thought the wolf was going to walk away when suddenly a small whine escaped from the back of his throat, casuing the animal to stiffen. Peeta internally cursed, trying to make himself smaller as the intruder turned back around, ears pulled back in suspicion. Its tail gave a single wag, its hackles bristling as its eyes scanned the darkness for the location of the whine.

And when it's eyes finally locked on him, deep as the greenest grass on a sunny spring morning, Peeta's blood turned to fire in is veins.

It was a wolf from 2.

**A/N: What do you think folks? It's my own take on the Alpha/Beta/Omega wolf ranks. Please review with your thoughts so I'll know whether to continue or not? Oh, and don't worry about Gale, this is a 100% Peetato story (:**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for all the wonderful reviews guys! I'm glad you liked the first chapter! Here's chapter two for you all, I've worked all day to get this out for you! (:**

**Warnings: Dominance and Submission. Mentions of mpreg. Abuse.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games.**

Chapter Two

Peeta felt small under the emerald gaze, unable to prevent a second whine from leaping out of his mouth. He knew it was a wolf from 2 because of those eyes. Only wolves from 2 had green eyes. What would a wolf from 2 be doing around the 12 forest though? And a leader no less? Was he suicidal? Or maybe he was looking for a fight? Maybe to kill Warren and gain control over two packs, merging them into one. What would a merged pack from 2 and 12 be called? 212?

The wolves from 2 were ruthless. The pack would tell horror stories about them. Of their wild ways and aggressive behaviour. They never bred omegas, almost always alphas and betas. Warren claimed that this was their downfall. Omegas were the best baby carriers, especially males. The thought made Peeta shiver. He didn't want to carry a baby ever, even if it would produce strong offspring.

The inturder wolf stepped forward and Peeta crawled back. He didn't know if his ears could get any flatter or if his tail could tuck in any further. His back arched as he tried to seem defensive, maybe if he tried hard enough he could intimidate this wolf. Well, as intimidating as a scrappy Omega wolf could look while also being frightened out of his wits.

Undeterred, the wolf moved forward, seeming bigger than it had before. Peeta whimpered and crawled back some more, wishing he had never left the camp. A fire bloomed in his gut and he cursed himself and his nature. He couldn't do it, he couldn't submit. This was a wolf from a different pack. Submitting to him would be breaking every rule in the book. This was why Omegas didn't go out on their own, nor did they go hunting with the others. If they happened upon a wolf from a different pack, they'd submit themselves to them because they just couldn't help it.

Peeta knew that this wolf knew he was an Omega. It could probably smell it off him. He knew that it was trying to scare him, intimidate him. It wanted him to submit to it. Well, he wasn't having it. Mustering all his strength, he pushed up to stand as tall as he could-still a couple of inches under the other wolf-and tried to assume a dominant position of his own. He trembled with the effort, ears twitching and tail shaking. He guessed that this wasn't going to help his situation but he hoped that the wolf would appreciate the effort and leave him alone.

Of course it didn't.

It was strange, it actually looked like the wolf quirked an eyebrow at him, his eyes seeming to ask, _"Really? You're really going to try that?"_

Whimpering meekly, the green eyes of the 2 wolf seemed to pierce his very soul. It seemed like a weight was dropped onto his shoulders and he lowered himself back down onto the ground, shamefully burying his muzzle into the dirt. His ears flattened out again and he whimpered, an apology for his actions. The defiance made him sick and he felt like he was going to hurl.

Sensing this, the larger wolf leaned down and nudged the side of his face with his nose. Peeta whined. So this wolf wasn't going to maul him. He nuzzled his head against the wolf's leg, having loved the comfort that the nudge had provided. It nudged him again, this time licking the side of his face as well. It felt so nice that he shivered, wanting more. But he still felt sick from having stood up against the wolf, his stomach churning like it was preparing itself to upchuck everything inside it. There was only one way it was going to go away but it was the one thing he couldn't do.

Submit.

If he did submit, then the wolf from 2 wouldn't see him as a threat. But what it would do would be very probably worse in the end, taking the submission as an invite to go ahead and fuck him. It was how the others in 12 saw it anyway and since he had known no other life other than being in 12, he was pretty sure that it was the same over in 2 as well.

Maybe if he submitted actively to it, it wouldn't see him as a threat. Passive submission was what he was used to, rolling over onto his back and whimpering until someone rubbed him or nibbled on his throat. It was based entirely on instincts, whenever a member of the pack would pass him, he would get a burning up his body, a fire that could only be quenched by someone pining him down and either rubbing him or nibbling on his sensitive spots (his throat and his stomach).

Maybe if he submitted actively, he would at least have a chance to run if the wolf did take it the wrong way. Sure, he'd hurl a couple of times before he made it back to camp for rejecting it but after all this, it would be very likely that Delly was going to smack him, which would hopefully be enough to get rid of it.

Giving it a go, Peeta lowered his body as far as it would go, drawing back his lips and ears. He lowered his hindquarters, moving his tail fully between his legs. He twitched and raised his head, offering his muzzle to the wolf from 2, arching his back towards him. He hoped to gods that it wouldn't take it the wrong way, it wouldn't take it the wrong way, it wouldn't take it the wrong way.

The wolf from 2 seemed to smile, which Peeta had never seen a wolf do up until now. For a millisecond, he began to wonder what this wolf looked like in human form. Was the smile the same? The eyes? The way it quirked its eyebrow?

Peeta whined, his body on fire and practically screaming at its mind, _What are you doing you idiot? Roll over and bare your damn neck! Spread your legs for good measure! Just think of how this strong wolf could pin you down and dominant you, of how it could nibble and lick and bite you until you are a writhing mess on the ground-_

He shook his head, unsetttling dust that had coated the leaves around his head. The little Omega at the back of his head continued to scream at him none-the-less, relentlessly tormenting him. He couldn't give in to it. It was against pack rules. Warren may not be able to risk killing him but he could punish him by starving him of his scraps or tying him to a post in his wolf form for everyone to laugh at for weeks, like a chained up dog.

What happened next shocked him.

The wolf from 2 changed form.

Now _this_ was definitely agaisnt the rules. You could never show your true form to a different pack member. No exceptions. Never mind being tied to a damn post, if Peeta exposed himself to this animal like it was exposing itself to him, Warren would have his head on a stick, male Omega or not.

Somehow, the animal changed back into a clothed human form. Peeta had heard somewhere that only a talented few could do this, while the rest of them were doomed to turn back nude. That was another reason why he never morphed back in the forest. He would turn back naked which, even though only members of his own pack should be the ones around these woods and had ripped his clothes off enough times themselves, he still couldn't bring himself to do comfortably.

Even when in human form, the wolf reeked of dominance. He was tall and strong, very likely the reason why he was such an imposing and intimidating character as a wolf. His hair was light blond, much like his fur, and his eyes were still a definite green. Two dark emerald jewels gleaming in the moonlight. Even though Peeta now had the upper hand since he was still in his wolf form, he could not attack. Because he was still a whining little pathetic Omega.

The man reached out and brushed his hand through his fur, a smirk crawling onto his face when Peeta whined. Damnit, he had to sort himself out. This was a wolf from 2. _From 2._ He couldn't give in. Surely since he was from a different pack the reaction should be different? Wasn't that how it was supposed to work?

When he spoke, his voice was deep but not threatening. Clear as crystal with every word pronounced perfectly, not a single stutter or mumble. "Are you one of the 12?" he asked. Peeta was taken by surprise by the question but the whimper that came out in response was answer enough for the man.

"I see," he said. He looked deep into his eyes, seeming to be scanning him for something. The gaze made Peeta want to turn and flee, but something kept him glued in place, an unknown force of some sort. When he seemed to find what he was looking for, the emerald eyes lit up. "You're an Omega, aren't you?"

Another whine.

"I knew it," the man said. His hand pushed through his fur and scratched the back of his ear. Peeta hated how good it felt and how much it made him want to submit to him. "What are you doing out here little Omega?"

_I could ask you the same question! _Peeta thought.

The man's eyes gleamed with curiousity when he refused to show any signs of answering his question. "We don't have male Omegas back home. I wish we did, you're a beautiful speciman." Peeta growled at the back of his throat, trying to warn him off, but when the man's eyes darkened dangerously he stopped aburptly, too terrified to continue. "Watch the tone pup, I may not be from around here but the rules are all the same."

Peeta stayed in active submission, not wanting to get the guy any more mad at him. Gods, he had to get out of here. But how? The man was still petting him, seeming to be completely fascinated by his fur and ears. He had said that he didn't have Omegas back in 2, maybe he was expecting him to roll over for him immediately. It was difficult not to, the man was attractive enough and when he'd look at him with those eyes of his, Peeta's knees would wobble.

"Do you think you could turn back for me so we can hold a conversation and you can actually answer my questions?" he asked. Peeta growled again. No way in hell he was turning back for this guy. He felt sick but ignored it, growling defiantly at the inturder. How dare he think that he would just turn back for him if he asked! The man sighed and shook his head. "Okay," he said.

Peeta thought maybe he was going to turn around and leave when suddenly he reached out and pinched two pressure points: one above his left eye and the other on his neck. Peeta let out a high pitched squeal when a glorious pain washed over him, like no pain he had ever felt before. He loved pain, it was amazing and made him feel _so good._ Another curse of being an Omega. Masochist tendancies.

Next thing he knew, he was sitting in the dirt, human form, naked as the day he was born. The man was staring at him with an amused smirk, not even bothering to hide the fact that he was basically eye fucking his body. The gaze, the intense stare of the man from 2 when he was in such a vulnerable position was too much. He'd been taken by surprise and couldn't stop himself from curling his head into the ground and rolling out onto his back.

"Now there's the classic Omega habits I've heard about," the man said. He sat down on the ground beside him, folding his legs and running his fingers through Peeta's hair. Peeta keened, whining at the touch and wanting more. "I'm Cato," the man said.

Peeta didn't answer, not wishing to share his name. He was already embarrassing himself enough by mewling and whimpering, having submitted and broken all the rules in the book. Cato was a nice name, he liked it. Short and sweet. Cato scratched his head, chuckling at how it made him squirm. He wanted nothing more than for this man to pin him to the ground and nibble on his neck.

"You're really not going to speak to me are you?" Cato asked.

Still no answer. It didn't matter anyway, Peeta wasn't supposed to talk to Alphas unless spoken to and he still wasn't allowed to talk to them as if they were on equal terms. This Cato man hadn't acted like an Alpha at all because just like an Omega's instincts were to keen and beg to be ridden, Alpaha's instincts were to rule and dominate, punishing those who disobeyed. Maybe Peeta had guessed wrong and Cato was just a Beta-

He yelped when Cato smacked his backside. "Speak when you're spoken to Omega, remember your place," he snarled.

Okay, he was defnitely an Alpha.

The whole 'remembering your place' thing really didn't work for Peeta. The amount of times he'd been spanked and punished for forgetting where he stood was astronimical. It didn't matter though, he relished in being smacked. Disgusting as it made him feel that he enjoyed such a thing, he couldn't help it. There's nothing you can do about instincts. And he instincts _loved_ being spanked. Especially on the ass.

"So let's try again shall we?" Cato asked. "What's your name?" Sensing a sudden air of hostility, Peeta mumbled his name. "Sorry?"

"My name's Peeta," he said a bit louder.

"Pee-ta," Cato repeated, as if tasting the word on his tongue. "I like it. Tell me Peeta, are you part of the 12 pack?"

Peeta nodded, scowling at the ground.

"And who is the current pack leader?"

Why would he wish to know such a thing? Peeta remembered the situation he was currently in and swallowed the lump in his throat. Could he really give this guy Undersee's name? Would there be ripples from it? When he paused for too long, Cato smacked him again, ripping an involuntary moan from his mouth. "Warren Undersee," he admitted shamefully.

"Undersee's still alive?" Cato asked, sounding surprised. "I thought that geezer had bit the dust ages ago."

"No," Peeta muttered. "He was ill a while back and rumours had spread that he had died but he made a recovery. I suppose _your_ people didn't get the news." He winced, feeling nauseous at his attitude. He expected another slap but it didn't come.

"And I am right in believing that you're an Omega, aren't I?" Cato asked.

Peeta scoffed. "What gave it away?" he asked in faux shock.

Another slap.

Okay, he deserved that one.

"Yes," he answered dully after recovering from the shockwaves of his third smack. Oddly enough, he didn't mind this near enough stranger hitting him. It felt . . . right. "I'm an Omega, okay?"

"Gods, I never expected Omegas to be so . . . " Cato trailed off. Peeta narrowed his eyes at him, wanting to sit up but also wanting to spread his legs at the exact same time.

"What?" he asked. "Slutty?" This guy did something to him. Something he couldn't explain. Something that made him _want_ to be an Omega. That made him want to be under the control of this handsome wolf. He had to mentally scold himself. This wolf wasn't part of his pack. He shouldn't even be _letting_ him hit him like that, even if he was an Alpha.

"I was going to say pretty," Cato replied.

Peeta had heard many words to describe him in the past ever since he'd became an Omega. Hot. Dirty. Whore. Bad Dog. Slut. Fleebag. Wimp. Sexy. Never anything as kind and frilly as 'pretty'. It made him scowl. Cato was making fun of him. Well jokes on him, he had stopped giving a damn about what people thought about him long ago. It was ridiculous. He was lying on his back, completely naked and covered in dirt, seconds away from spreading his legs and all this Alpha could come up with was _pretty?_ No, he was making fun of him. Ha ha, hilarious, tease the tramp why not?

Cato smiled affectionately and rubbed his thumb into the skin just above his collarbone. It was a particulary sensitive spot and Peeta couldn't help himself, arching his back with a moan and dropping his legs apart completely. He _needed_ Cato to do something. Right now, lost in the esctasy like haze, morals didn't matter, he just needed someone to pin him down and ride up against him.

Eyes flashing back into canine slits, a feral growl escaped from the back of Cato's throat at the sight of the submissive pup. Peeta whimpered and bared his neck to him, a sign that he wanted to be taken. Teeth closed around his throat and Peeta groaned, shutting his eyes and lifting his hips. Cato mouthed at his neck, licking and nipping the vulnerable skin.

Was this really how low he had sunk? To letting a different pack member suck his neck? Gods if Warren ever found out-

His train of thought was cut off when Cato crawled over him on all fours and pinned him to the ground with his weight. Oh gods, it felt good. And when Cato rutted against him, when the scratchy material of his pants rubbed against the sensitive skin of his crotch, his body seized up with pleasure. Never had he experienced anything so amazing before, not with Gale, or Cray, or Thom, or anyone else. Cato was pracitcally leaving stars burning behind his eyes.

When he felt a finger glide along the cleft of his ass, he shivered, another pathetic whine passing his lips. Normally the others would just push in without any warning. Not Cato. No, Cato was different. He gently pushed his finger into him, having been lubricated with his own spit. Peeta moaned, pushing his chin up further so Cato had more access to his sensitive neck. He spread his legs further and rolled his hips, panting for breath and trying to stop his claws from growing out so that he didn't scratch Cato's back.

Peeta was so lost in his own little eurphoric world that he missed it when Cato said something. "Hmm?" he asked.

"I said, I have to make you mine," Cato murmured against his neck. He rubbed his stomach and Peeta almost forgot to be alarmed by the statement. "I'm not going back to 2 without you."

_Well, sorry Mr Alpha, I'm part of the 12 pack. Breed your own damn Omega! _Peeta thought. He wasn't even sure why he was letting the intruder do these things to him. It was just that he was so much gentler with him. Like he actually mattered. That he wasn't just a piece of meat who's only worth was for a fuck and dominance boost.

Then again, getting at it in the middle of the woods in the dark wasn't any better.

Goddamn it, why was everything so complicated?

It was when the familiar feeling of canines scraping against his throat that he realized what Cato had _actually_ meant. Oh shit, god, oh no, nah-uh, not going to happen, he had to get out now.

"Okay, that's enough," Peeta yelped, wiggling away from Cato and scrambling away. He tripped up and fell on his face from the intensity of the disobidence sickness. He stretched out and listened to the bones cracking in his back before padding around and giving the Alpha a death glare that sent his stomach into a flip-flop. "No one mates me," he said.

It was a rule of his. Basically because of Gale and his traitorous insistance to bite him. He did not want to be mated by anyone. There was no point in being mated, in Peeta's eyes, because even if he did get bitten and did have a mate, he'd still want to spread his legs for any old wolf who came by. Only the difference would be that his mate would kill anyone who tried to fuck him. Of course, he knew that someday he'd have to be mated but he wasn't letting it be now, especially not by a damn Alpha from the 2 pack.

"How do the members of your pack deal with you?" Cato asked. "If you were an Omega in my pack your ass would be permanant red colour because of the amount of times I'd have you smacked."

Peeta shivered. _Oh gods, please_, his body screamed.

"Yeah, well, good thing you don't have to because I'm from 12," he snarled, baring his canines at him. His teeth weren't that sharp-being an Omega and all-and even just baring them at someone would be enough to make him throw up his scraps sometimes. "If I were you, I'd get out of here before Warren finds you. He'll have your head on a stick before you can even second guess your decision to come up here!"

Cato raised his eyebrows, unimpressed. "I won't be leaving until I've gotten what I came for."

"Well then I can only hope that you're able to climb trees because there's nowhere to run. They're going to find you," Peeta hissed. He turned around and morphed back into his wolf form. He looked back at Cato one last time, narrowing his eyes when he saw the Alpha staring at him, almost longingly. Peeta shuddered and quickly turned back, bounding away before he submitted himself again.

When he arrived back at camp, the others hadn't returned yet. He was supposed to have went out on that run to clear his head, but now his head was just clouded up with more confusing thoughts. Most of them to do with this Alpha from 2. He had treated him . . . different but the same. He put him in his place when he was defiant but when he was riding against him it wasn't . . . _riding_ it was . . . almost like trying to mate with a loved one.

Peeta didn't bother turning back when he returned to his tent. He was violently sick outside, his nature cleansing itself of his defiant behaviour. He stayed curled up in a tight ball inside his tent, with his muzzle resting on his leg. He wasn't particularly big for his age, in fact he was still the size of a pre-teen puppy which was the length of two metres when stretched and a height of a metre and half when standing tall. Normal wolves his age were larger but he was the runt of the litter which he supposed should have been a sign that he was going to be an Omega since a male runt was an abnormality.

He felt horrible for how he let Cato dominate him. It was the biggest betrayal someone could commit. It could have been worse though, he supposed. He could have let him bite him or have proper sex then he would never be able to face the Warren or the rest of the pack ever again. Gods, what would Delly think of him if she knew? Even before she had been mated by Darius, she would _never_ have let a wolf from a different pack screw her like he let Cato nearly screw him.

He was truly horrible.

"Hey little Omega."

Peeta lifted his head up and lifted his ears, trying to hide his disappointment when he saw Cray in the threshold of his tent.

Old Cray was literally the pack pervert. He would fuck anything on legs. Out of all the people he had submitted to ever since he'd turned into an Omega, Peeta hated Cray the most. He didn't want to get some disease he'd contracted from some of the other wolves. But there was nothing he could do to stop him.

"Turn back," Cray ordered.

Doing as he was told, he stretched out and turned back into a human. He sat back, bending his knees, arms resting in front of him to cover his decency. "Hello Cray," he said, his voice strained as he fought the urge to rub himself up against Cray's legs. He wasn't allowed to say 'Hey' to people like Cray because it would be too civilized a greeting, like they were actually on the same level. Cray was a very high ranking Beta, nearly second hand man to Warren. The only person who allowed him to say 'Hey' to them was Gale but that was only because he wanted to mate him. "How can I help you?"

"You know what I'm here for," Cray stated.

Clenching his teeth to resist the urge to spit at him, Peeta nodded. Dirty bastard. He left a hunt just to come back for a fuck. Peeta pushed his hands through the grass, crawling forward and nudging Cray's leg with his head. He whined like a sad little pup and nuzzled the man's thigh, the fire already reigniting in his veins even after his encounter with Cato.

"That's right you slut, beg for it," Cray said. Cray loved colourful name calling. It just made him feel even more powerful. Peeta pushed into him, pushing up onto his knees and winding his arms around his waist. Cray grinned and pushed his hand through his hair, stroking his head like he was a little pet. Then again, he kind of was. "Okay, lie down whore."

With a little whimper, Peeta lay down at his feet and tilted his head back to expose his neck, spreading his legs out to him. Cray climbed ontop of him and latched onto his neck, moving his crotch up against him roughtly. Peeta moaned loudly, pawing at Cray's back the way he knew he liked. With an aggressive growl, Cray grabbed his arms and pinned them into the ground. He knew he loved being pinned down into the dirt, to be pushed down and dominanted.

"Cray," he keened, begging the man to be rougher, to thrust harder, to pin him down more.

"Slutty, slutty, slutty," Cray murmured into his neck. He pulled his pants down and pushed into him so hard that his hips lifted off the ground. Suddenly Peeta thought of Cato, the wolf from 2, who had tried to mate him. Who had been so caring and gentle while also knowing how to be rough and knew when to punish him. He couldn't help thinking of how attractive he was and how much he had enjoyed it when he rubbed his neck.

"Slutty," Peeta whined, panting for air. Cray chuckled and slid down, nipping at his stomach with the points of his canines. Oh gods, Cray knew how to pound him hard, how to remind him where he stood in the pecking order.

"You smell different," Cray said. He trailed his nose up his neck ad took a sniff, taking a tentative lick to taste the sweat that had built up there. "Like Oak." Peeta stiffened, his blood turning to ice in his veins. Would he be able to tell? Know that he submitted to a wolf from a different pack? "It's wonderful."

Relaxing a bit, Peeta arched his back, pushing himself into Cray and moaning when he grabbed his thigh and slung it around his waist to get a better angle. He wanted to howl in pleasure but he knew Cray didn't like that so he bit down on his lip and whimpered. It was strange, Cray hated loud noises from his partners but he made plenty himself, expressing his esctasy and desire and pleasure. He'd moan and groan and swear until he came with a thrust so hard that Peeta nearly blacked out.

Afterwards, he'd always sit and let Peeta curl up in his lap, taking advantage of the pup's need to be constantly stroked. Ironically, kind of like a cat. He'd rub his back and listen to the way he'd purr and whine. "Little pup," he said affectionately, running his fingers through his hair.

"Cray!" Delly barged into the tent, eyes slitted and teeth bared. "Get out of here you disgusting pig you're supposed to be on the hunt!"

"I don't think what I'm supposed to do is any of your business," Cray replied calmly.

"Leave him alone!" Delly crouched to the ground and crawled forward a bit. "Peeta, get out of his lap, he needs to leave now." Peeta whined at her in protest, pushing back into Cray and nuzzling his leg.

"You see, he wants me here," Cray said.

"He doesn't know what the hell he wants and you know it! He's a damn Omega! And you're taking advantage," Delly barked. She held her hand out to Peeta. "Come here Peeta, now. You know he's just going to have you on your face in less than half an hour just to fuck you again."

He knew she was right. Delly was always right. It was annoying but it was also a fact. Peeta could always rely on her to look after him when he wasn't thinking straight whether it be because he had just let a pack member have sex with him or because someone was rubbing his underside the way he liked.

He knew he should get out of Cray's lap like Delly said but he couldn't. Cray had began scratching behind his ears and he purred, stretching out his limbs and settling back down. Judging by the scowl that wormed its way onto Delly's face, Cray just smirked at her truimphantly. "Oh Peeta," she sighed, shaking her head. It irritated him when she acted like she never used to be like this before Darius mated her. Like she had never let Cray fuck her when she was a simpering Omega either.

"Little puppy perfers my company over yours," Cray teased.

"Little puppy is a slave to basic instinct," Delly said dryly. "You know I'm not going to let you get away with ditching. I'll tell Darius and he'll tell Warren. You don't even have a valid excuse for it, do you? And by the by, being an ugly, horny pedophile does not count."

"I'll come up with something. Warren won't mind, especially when his little pup is kept statisfied." Cray patted Peeta's rump, chuckling when he mewled at him for it. He wasn't kidding either, Warren was very fond of the fact that he had a male Omega in his pack. In fact, he was waiting avidly for the day that someone mated him so they could have sex and Peeta could get pregnant. The desperation for strong offspring was high, even if it shouldn't even matter because they had plenty of wolves in the pack. And sadly, Omegas were the only males who could carry pups and they always produced the strongest offspring, so Peeta was very high up in the list of wolves the pack wanted to get pregnant. Soon.

Delly scrunched up her nose. "Does it smell like Oak in here?" she asked.

Peeta curled in on himself, knowing the real origin of the scent. Would Delly know what the scent meant? Cray hadn't but Delly was much smarter . . . He watched her carefully, waiting for her reaction. Thankfully, Cray jumped in. "It's puppy's new smell," he said.

"Jesus, he has a fucking name," Delly snapped. "God Cray, half the time you're through your dick, it's disgusting." She folded her arms. "I thought oak was the smell of wolves from 2?" Peeta stiffened again. Gods, where did she hear that?

"Yeah," Cray answered. "You're right. Before I came back, the entire woods reeked like oak. There's a 2 wolf around here."

_Cato_.

The name burned its way into Peeta's mind and he couldn't help whining. Suddenly, he wished that he wasn't sititng in Cray's lap, that he was sitting in Cato's. That it was Cato's hands on his backside and in his hair. That it was Cato who called him puppy and stroked him and listened to him whimper and mewl. He looked up at Delly and blinked, no longer in a clingy mood.

Trying to be as discreet as possible, he clamboured out of Cray's lap and tried to slink over to Delly. Sometimes even she had the power to make him want to turn over. This time it was Delly's turn to smirk in truimph. She knelt down and wrapped her arm around his shoulders, pulling him close to her side. Cray scowled and stood up. "I have the right mind to-"

"Don't you dare!" Delly snapped. "You lay a finger on him and I'll kick you in the balls!"

"Remember your place Omega!" Cray snapped back. He raised his hand to hit her but Peeta pushed his way in front of her.

"Don't hit her!" He squeaked, throwing his arms in front of his face to take the blow. When it didn't come he peeked through his arms at him. Cray's arm was still raised but seemed to be frozen in stasis. "You may be a Beta but you can't hit a girl. Think of what Darius would do to you!"

Clenching his jaw, Cray's arm came down and smacked Peeta across the face. "That's for blondie," he said in a hard voice. "Next time it will be her." He pushed past them and left the tent. Peeta sighed and rubbed his cheek glumly.

"Delly, you can't do that," he said.

"He doesn't have a right!" Delly exclaimed.

"Yes, he does Dell, he's a Beta, he can do what he wants to me," Peeta replied.

Delly gritted her teeth together and folded her arms tight across her chest. "It's not fair. I should never have let Darius mate me. You're on your own. Maybe if I hadn't have been mated, Cray would be coming to me instead of you."

Peeta shook his head. "Delly, you love Darius. There's nothing wrong with it. I'm fine. It's nice to be groomed sometimes . . ."

"I know," Delly said. "You know I care about you Peeta. Please, don't let Cray screw you over."

Peeta shook his head. "Everyone screws me over," he said. Delly sighed and pulled him into a hug.

"It's all going to be okay," she murmured. "I'm here for you." She pulled back and lightly slapped his arm. "Well, I need to get back to the pups."

"Okay," Peeta said. He patted her shoulder and let her away. Sighing and rubbing his face, he pulled his clothes on. He picked a blanket off the ground and wrapped himself up in it. Delly only wanted the best for him but it seemed that she had forgotten what it was like to be an Omega. She'd tell him to stop as if he had a choice, as if he could control it.

He lay down and thought about Cato. The mysterious wolf from 2 who was prowling around the 12 forests right this minute.

_I won't be leaving until I've gotten what I came for._

He turned around on his face and nuzzled the grass, wishing that he could see him again. But he knew he couldn't. He couldn't risk it again. It was too dangerous.

When he closed his eyes, a pair of deep emerald green eyes stared back at him through the darkness.

**A/N: Whelp, what do you think? Poor Peeta, he's a slave to his natural instincts.**

**Please R&R! (:**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Oh my word guys, the reaction to this fic is astonishing! You're all so nice! I'm glad you're liking it! If you haven't guessed already, this story is a smutty story. There isn't really a way to get around it with the way Peeta is, you know? Still, I hope you enjoy the chapter! (:**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games.**

Chapter Three

The girls were the nicest. They weren't mean or rough or disgusting. They liked to entertain the idea of a pet. They'd say things like "Who's a good little boy?" and would spend hours playing with him. Thankfully, not in the way some of the boys did.

Madge was the kindest. As the daughter of the leader, she was a very important member of the pack as she would produce the offspring who would become pack leader when her father passed on, since the 12 pack did not believe in women being leaders. She was a timid girl who could stand up for herself if the problem arose but perferred the tender harmony of silence.

Since she would never speak, she would spend her days with Peeta, sitting in the grass outside with his head in her lap, softly stroking his hair while she hummed quietly to herself. She did it almost mindlessly, threading her fingers through his hair and sometimes Peeta worried that if he'd whine or growl in content, he'd break her train of through and ruin the spell that always seemed to fall come over her.

He perferred the quiet of Madge over the curiousity of the pups and the roughness of the males. Sexuality was a free for all in the 12 pack and no one ever called themselves 'gay' or 'straight'. If you didn't have a mate and you were horny, you either seeked out the pack's Omega or jumped the bones of the person closest at hand. Before she had been mated, Delly had been the go to girl for guys and Peeta had been the go to boy for girls. But ever since Darius had mated her and the guys discovered that ass fucking was tighter than pussy fucking, a lot more males started coming to Peeta with a new outlook on their sexuality.

Peeta wasn't always the person who'd get fucked, although he never did the fucking. Once a girl came to him when she had turned sixteen who had recently discovered she was a beta. She had smacked him down-common beta behaviour since they liked being in control-and had demanded for him to eat her out. It wasn't that bad, the Omega instincts _liked_ being ordered about and smacked around but it left his morals in shreds. The girl still came to him sometimes, although she was very close to being mated.

Peeta still didn't know her name.

The day after he had nearly been mated by Cato, Peeta found himself back in Madge's lap while she hummed her usual playlist of songs. Madge had a knack for relaxing him, always knowing where to scrape her fingernails if he got nervous or where to stroke him when he was unsettled. She was the best pet owner. Madge was one of the first people he would trust with his life, only just below Delly.

"You're very unsettled today, puppy," she surprised him by saying, her voice so quiet it was almost mute. Like Cray, Madge called him 'puppy'. But not in the vile, digusting sense that Cray did, she just called him it because she liked having a puppy and, to her, Peeta wasn't a pet-like name. But she was right. He _was_ unsettled. He couldn't help thinking about his encounter with Cato. Why was he here? What had he came for? Why did he want to know who their pack leader was? Why had he let him ride against him? Why hadn't he told Warren that he knew where the intruder was yet? These questions had haunted Peeta all night and into early morning, leaving him unstatisfied without answers.

"How can you tell?" he mumbled.

"The fur on the back of your neck grows out when you're unsettled," Madge said, brushing her fingers through the thin blond hairs that had sprouted out from the nape of his neck. "Not all of it, just some." That was another thing about the leader's daughter, she noticed _everything_. "Is puppy okay?"

"Yeah, puppy's fine," Peeta lied, not wishing to share with her the truth of his discomfort. It wasn't that he didn't trust her but she was just too far up the ranks to go to with such a sensitive topic. He knew that she would take a secret to the grave if he asked her to but she spend nearly every night with her father. Even if she didn't tell her dad about Cato if Peeta told her, he still didn't feel comfortable sharing the information with her.

"Your right leg twitches when you're lying," Madge said, almost to herself. Peeta frowned, looking down at the supposed leg, not even noticing that it twitched. Madge sighed and slid her hand down his leg, stroking her thumb over his knee almost mindlessly. Peeta sighed and settled back into her lap.

Katniss approached them, her hand behind her back. "Guess what I've got," she said.

"What?" Peeta asked.

"Scraps!" she replied gleefully. She dropped to her knees and held some entrails out in the palm of her hand. Peeta's senses were immediately filled with the smell of meat and he sat up. He glanced up at Katniss and was flooded with guilt. She was so nice to him it was almost painful. He hated himself for how horrible a friend he was to her, screwing her boyfriend nearly every other night.

"Um, no thanks," he said.

Katniss slumped, her hand still held out infront of her. "What? Why?" she asked, slightly hurt.

"I-I'm not hungry," Peeta lied. He couldn't take scraps from her anymore. Never mind being a sex whore, he was also a food whore at the best of times.

"Right leg," Madge murmured. "Twitch twitch." Sometimes Madge was a tad loopy, her mind not as solid as it used to be. She'd been diagnosed with alzeimers a while back and ever since then her mind had been disintergrating slowly. It was another reason why she stayed in the company of Peeta, because he couldn't afford to judge the people who accompained him.

"Are you sure?" Katniss asked. "If you're worried about Warren or Cray, they didn't see me. I took these when they weren't looking."

"I'm fine, Katniss," Peeta said, dropping his gaze to the ground. Then his stomach growled, giving away how empty he actually felt inside. Katniss quirked an eyebrow, having heard it.

"Just take the scraps," she said.

"I really shouldn't."

"Come on pup," Katniss insisted, her voice teasing. "Eat the scraps." When Peeta looked at the entrails in her hand sheepishly, she sighed. "And that's an order." Knowing that she meant well but hating it when someone said, 'That's an order' but not being able to do anything about it, Peeta took the meat out of her palm. "Good boy," Katniss said when he ate it all.

Once he'd eaten it all, the growling stopped and he felt content again. Katniss was grinning from ear to ear, pleased with herself for getting him to eat it. Peeta's body heated up and he shut his eyes, lying down on his stomach between the two girls and whining.

"Wow, easy tiger," Katniss said. "I've got a boyfriend, remember?"

_Believe me, I know_, Peeta thought bitterly.

"You're missing out," Leevy said, appearing behind Katniss almost as if materializing out of thin air. Leevy had a knack for moving silently through camp, often scaring people when she'd sneak up in front of them. "Maybe we could get fleebag to give you a lick out on the night before your wedding."

Katniss sighed. "Wedding," she said. "Sometimes I even wonder if Gale is ever going to bite me."

Peeta whined again, folding his arms and burying his face into them. He felt Madge's hand at the back of his neck, very likely playing with the supposed hairs that apparently grew out when he was unsettled. He felt awash with guilt, wanting nothing more than for there to be a subject change. Either that or an opportunity for him to leave.

"He's just waiting for the right time," Leevy said. "I mean, who else would put up with a twat who disappears almost every night? He can't afford _not_ to mate you."

"He doesn't disappear every night, just every . . . other night," Katniss mumbled.

"Where does he even go?" Leevy asked. Katniss shrugged. Peeta couldn't handle the pressure anymore and climbed to his feet, turning and heading out of camp. "Where are you going fleebag? Come back soon, I might need you later for-Ow! Katniss!"

"Stop talking to him like that, Leevy," Katniss said harshly.

"Goodbye puppy," Madge said under her breath.

Peeta turned and smiled at Katniss and Madge, reluctantly giving Leevy a smile as well, lest she get offended and get snarky at him for it. "I'll see you guys later," he said. He didn't walk too far into the forest, just far enough in that no one would see him. He needed to be on his own, to stretch himself out a bit.

Being an Omega, he had the body of a double jointed contortionist. Sure, it was helpful in some regards but in others it was annoying. He had to stretch constantly, cracking all his bones into place in order to perserve his flexibility. Normally he would work it into his day but after having sat listening to Katniss and Leevy talk about Gale and marriage, stretching himself out seemed like the only viable excuse he could come up with to get out of there.

Omegas were very flexible animals, even in human form. Peeta could bend like a pretzal without even trying. He slid down to the ground and cracked his knuckles, twisting around onto his stomach and pulling his top half backwards until the crown of his head touched the bottom of his back. It didn't even hurt. In fact, it actually felt good. It was one of the few things he actually liked about being an Omega wolf.

When all the bones in his back cracked into place, he lifted his arms back so his hands pressed into the ground beside his shoulders and used to leverage to pull himself up and over his head so he was back to sitting on his knees on the ground. When in camp, he'd only do the standard stretches-pushing his arms out with joined fingers, sitting with his legs spread and touching his toes, etc. etc.-because he didn't want any of the other wolves getting wind of what he was actually capable of.

Peeta lay on his back with a sigh, staring up at the sky through the treeline. He wondered what it was like to be up there while he stretched his legs, bending his right knee-the supposed 'twitching' leg, according to Madge-and bringing it up until it pressed into the ground by his head. _Up there_, he thought,_ in the sky. What would it be like to have the ability to fly over the tree tops instead of being trapped under them?_

While he did the same thing with his other leg, he watched a bird as it circled the skyline. It was a mockingjay by the looks of it. Mockingjays were beautiful birds, able to mimic the tunes of those who could sing to them properly. Katniss was an expert at singing to the birds, the only one in the camp who was able to get them to sing back to her. Peeta supposed that her father used to sing to her. George Everdeen had been an amazing singer, always being the one to lead the folk songs at the campfire at night. Sadly, he was killed in a pack brawl back when Katniss was eleven. Gale's father had also been killed in the fight and that was one of the reasons why himself and Katniss had bonded so well.

Which just made his betrayal all the more disgusting.

Katniss had put everything she had into her relationship with Gale. Her mother was always busy, being the pack's healer and her baby sister Prim was still only a pup who spent most of her free time with her mother so Gale was all Katniss had and she had invested herself so deeply in him that she believed that he was perfect and could do no wrong.

Peeta groaned, pushing himself backwards onto his shoulderblades and flipping up onto his feet. Gods, he was a horrible person. In a flurry of rage, he roundhouse kicked a tree, leaving a dent in the bark a couple of inches above his head. "Shit!" he cursed as a blinding pain shot up his foot. "Argh!" Okay, no more kicking trees. His human paws couldn't take it.

Don't focus on Gale, it never ends well.

Still angry with himself, Peeta growled and kicked the grass, sending an acorn bouncing across the clearing. He always used his time stretching to gripe and groan to himself about how hard everything was. Basically, it was his time for self pity. He rarely took part in self pity as it was pathetic but when he did, he did it _right._

"Pull yourself together you idiot," he muttered, shaking himself off. Standing up straight, he lifted his leg up behind him and grabbed his foot, pulling it up so his toes touched the back of his head. He groaned as his tired muscles stretched and he shut his eyes, focusing on the small pain it caused and the small pain only. Not Gale. Or Katniss. Or Leevy. Not even Madge. Just the pain.

"I didn't know that Omegas were made of rubber."

Ripped out of his little world, Peeta lost his balance, shocked by the sound and thought of someone else being there. He tripped and fell on his face, which he only just managed to save with his arms. His body flushed with a desperate warmth and he cursed. That voice, he _knew_ that voice. How could he forget it?

"We're not made of rubber."

"Oh? Then how come your leg is bent so far backwards that it looks like you've broken a limb?"

Peeta frowned into the ground. "I haven't broken a limb."

Cato chuckled and came out of the shadows where he had been disguised in. Peeta cursed himself, only just noticing the oak smell that had suddenly overtaken the clearing. How had he not smelt it before? Note to self: no more self pity sessions. He tried to get up but realized with dread that his hair was tangled in the aglet of his shoelace. It didn't matter, this had happened before and was easily solved.

Peeta pushed himself up onto his knee, bending back and reaching behind himself to untangle his foot. When his hair was freed, the release of pressure made him fall backwards with a yelp. His knees were tucked underneath him and yet, still in the presence of a wolf, his legs managed to spread themselves against his will. When a small whine escaped his throat also against his will, he turned to glare at Cato for intruding on him, despite the sickness it caused.

But when he looked at him, he was surprised to see the wolf from 2 staring at him with wide eyes. "What?" he asked defensively.

"How do you do that?" Cato asked.

"What?" Peeta repeated, feeling a bit mad for being interuppted.

"Bend as if you're boneless."

Peeta pulled himself back up and gripped the grass, not giving in to his Omega instincts as easily this time around. He wasn't betraying his pack again. No way. "It's . . . an . . . Omega . . . thing . . ." he answered cautiously. Cato nodded, a smirk climbing onto his face. The simple quirk of his lips sent a flush of heat through Peeta's veins, causing him to drop his gaze to the ground, embarrassed. It was like the Alpha's amusement made it suddenly dawn on him that he had just been witnessed him with his head nearly completely over his head. "How long have you been standing there?" he asked.

"Long enough," Cato answered. "I am seriously reconsidering my decision on letting you decide to come back to 2 with me on your own. The way you can move it's . . . how can someone with muscles like yours twist and bend like that?"

Peeta shrugged, still avoiding eye contact. "I don't have muscles," he muttered.

"Peeta," Cato said. The sound of his name in Cato's tone of voice made Peeta shiver, forcing him to tighten his grip on the grass, "I practically flattened you into the ground yesterday, believe me, I felt your muscles."

"Well, I don't know, do I?" Peeta snapped back. His stomach turned upside down and he cupped his hand over his mouth. "I'm going to be sick." He could practically feel Katniss' scraps coming up his throat.

"Maybe you should watch that attitude of yours," Cato said almost truimphantly. "Or you are going to lose your lunch. I thought Omegas got smacked for acting the way you do. Wouldn't that stop you from acting out?" Wow, he really mustn't have been kidding when he said there weren't Omegas around 2.

Peeta set his mouth into a stubborn line and locked his eyes on a blade of grass. He wasn't going to tell Cato that Omegas liked being treated like bitches. To be beat down and forced to do stuff to other wolves. Even now, a plea for a slap was on the tip of his tongue. Cato looked so strong and overpowering, he could probably pound him into the ground harder than Gale or Cray ever could.

"Are you okay?" Cato frowned. "Your fur is coming out the back of your neck." He reached out and brushed his fingers through the blond fur.

"Ngh," Peeta complained, squirming away from him. "Don't touch me, you're not from my pack." He saw Cato's shadow cast in front of him, making him all the more aware of the fact that he was standing over him with him sitting at his feet like he _chose_ to be there. The comment just made Cato dig his fingers into the back of his neck harder. The small pain it caused made him shiver. "Stop it," he whined. "You're not from my damn pack!"

"Didn't seem to stop you yesterday," Cato said. His voice was low and sultry. Peeta's cheeks heated up in shame and a whine climbed out from the back of his throat. He could swear that he was gripping the grass so tightly that his knuckles were nearly bleeding. How could a wolf from a different pack have such an effect on him? Cato sat down behind him, his arm barely skimming Peeta's back. It made Peeta hyperaware of his presence and he curled into himself, almost panting with the exertion of controlling himself. "Will I get to see that wolf again?"

"Probably not," Peeta answered. He swallowed the bile that rose up in his throat and tucked his head into his knees.

"Too bad," Cato said. "That Peeta was one confident pup." _Confident?_ Gods, Cato came up with the weirdest of adjectives to describe him. He didn't seem to get him at all. Peeta busied himself bending his fingers backwards to touch the back of his hand, cracking the knuckles again. "Seriously, that's creepy. How do you do that?"

"Practice makes perfect," Peeta muttered. Even though Omegas were naturally bendy, it would eventually wear off if they didn't crack their bones regularly and stretch themselves out. Peeta was dedicated to keeping his flexible trait because it was really the only talent he had.

"You could be part of Cirque du Soleii," Cato said.

Peeta scoffed. "Yeah, right."

"You could be. A contortionist, maybe. I mean, gods, you had your damn leg nearly over your head." He rested his chin on his shoulder, his hot breath puffing across his cheek. Peeta closed his eyes and shuddered. "How the hell are you not mated yet?" he murmured.

"I don't let them."

"Ah, so I have competition then?"

Peeta scoffed. "I wouldn't say competition. More like a pack of hounds who like to play with the Omega. No one bites me, I'm my own person." Well, as much as his own person as he could be when he'd spread his legs for any tom, dick or harry who passed by. He held onto whatever shred of dignity he could hang onto. "And you're not even in the competition if there was one anyway. _You're_ not in _my_ pack."

"You could be. I could bite you and take you back to my neck of the woods," Cato murmured.

"What? Where everyone smells like Oak?" Peeta asked dryly. "What are you doing here anyway? You're so close to camp! What could you possibly need around here?"

"That is nothing for you to worry about," Cato replied. He wound his arm around his waist and slipped his hand underneath his t-shirt, softly stroking his stomach. Peeta closed his eyes and fell back against him, leaning against the wall of muscle behind him that was Cato. There was something about the forgien wolf that drew him in like a boat to a lighthouse. "Please let me bite you."

Peeta screwed his eyebrows up. "No," he answered immediately.

"Just a little bit? I won't break skin, I promise."

"Not. From. My. Pack." Peeta yelped when Cato tugged on his hair, forcing his head back to expose his neck. His fingers curled up in the grass, relaxing slightly now that one half of his instincts were satisfied. "You're not from my pack."

"Should that even matter?"

"As a matter of a fact, yes!" He groaned and puffed out his cheeks. "I'm going to lose my scraps." He squeaked when Cato pinched his side but the sickness eased.

"Better?" he asked.

"What?"

"I asked is that better?" Cato said. "I specialize in pressure points. Like above your eyebrow and your neck turn you from wolf form to human form, as I did to you yesterday. The nerves in your side quell illness when pinched." He scraped his canines up his neck, leaving thin scratches up his skin. Peeta squirmed, a pathetic little whimper passing his lips. Goodness, Cato was so intoxicating, it was nearly killing him. "Just one bite?" He was starting to sound a little desperate, like the world will end if he didn't get to bite him.

"You know you sound like a vampire." Peeta moaned when Cato rubbed his tummy some more, nuzzling his head back into him. His leg twitched, the need to shake it while he rubbed him high. He couldn't do it though, it was stupid and embarrassing. He prayed Cato didn't notice, wanting nothing more than to stretch himself out and curl up by his feet.

"There's only vampires in the regions of 6," Cato answered.

"Vampires suck," Peeta muttered.

Cato laughed. "How long have you been sitting on that one?" he asked.

"I actually never noticed the iorny in that sentence . . ." The sky had turned a light shade of pink and Peeta frowned. How long had they been out in the clearing? It couldn't possibly have been that long. Could it have? It was this simple fact that jolted him to his senses. He looked down at the hand that was still up his shirt, rubbing his tummy like he was a common house dog. But didn't he react to it like he _was _a common house dog?

Then again, that's what Omegas were. Common house dogs.

What was he _doing_?! How had he let Cato get so close? How had Cato _managed_ to get so close? Traitorious, that was the word. The word to describe the digusting habits of an Omega. Traitorious. Right now, he was acting like a traitor, letting the wolf from 2 groom and caress him into submitting again. Gods, he was good at it. Better than anyone in his pack. If he didn't want something, he was able to drag himself away, like he did everytime Gale tried to bite him, but Cato drew him in like a fever, poisoning him with his damn charm and smiles.

"I've . . . I've got to go," Peeta said. He tried to get up but yelped when Cato circled his arms around his waist and pulled him back. He held him tight, so tight he felt like his heart was going to squeeze out of his throat. "Cato, let go," he choked out, trying to pry his hands off of him. "Cato!"

"Don't speak to me like that Omega," Cato snapped, his voice taking on a darker tone. "Remember you place!"

"Gods, do you have DID or something?!"Peeta exclaimed. "One second it's all, _'oh let me bite you' _then next second it's all _'remember your damn place!'_"

Cato growled, his arms tightened around him, and started muttering something to himself. Peeta strained to hear, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion when he figured out that he was counting down from 10. He exhaled once he reached on and rested his forehead againt his back. "Fuck," he cursed.

"What's wrong?"

"Alpha instincts, they're driving me wild. Everytime you speak back, act like you're my equal, they scream at me to remind you where we stand here. That I'm above you and all that. It's strange. I've never been around an Omega before so I've never felt so obligated to assert dominance before but . . . I know I should let you get back to your pack now but I can't. I just can't," Cato said.

"Well, you're going to have to because you have no choice," Peeta said. He swooped down and bit Cato's hand as hard as he could, scrambling out of his arms when he whipped his arm away with a shocked yelp. He tasted blood in his mouth and tripped over his own feet, falling to his knees and throwing up bile for his disobedience. He stayed on his hands and knees, coughing and hacking up any residual vomit until there was nothing left.

He wished there was a way to control his instincts. There had to be some way, right? _Something_ that got rid of the need to be compliant and obedient all the time. Of course, the other option was to be mated but what use was that? It tied him to a person for the rest of his life, very likely someone he didn't want to be with. Who _did_ he want to be with exactly? One thing was for sure, it wasn't Cato. Couldn't be Cato. _Wasn't_ Cato. Wait, what was he talking about again?

"Just leave me the hell alone," he finally choked out, standing up and wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. "You're not from my pack, you shouldn't even _be_ here. If you want a little Omega to mess with, breed your own." Peeta paused and frowned. "You know what? Actually, don't. There's no room in this country for Omegas, we get treated like rubbish, I don't want any more of us roaming around here. I don't know . . . find a bendy Beta with a submissive kink."

Cato was frowning, completely confused. "You know it's not because you're Omega that I want to-"

"No, that's the only reason you want me. It's the only reason _anyone_ wants me. Because I'm submissive and am a slut! Behind that I'm boring as hell, no one's interested in that. I just count my blessings that no one in camp knows that I can bend the way I do," Peeta said. "Because I don't think I can handle Old Cray trying to bend my legs over my head while he fucks me."

"_Old_ Cray?" Cato asked, getting to his feet as well. "How old are the people who do stuff to you? What does it range from?"

"That's none of your business," Peeta said. Because it was true. What business was it of his of who screwed him? Fact was, the oldest person who had sex with him was well into her sixties and the youngest was a couple month's younger than him. But he didn't have to tell Cato anything about that. And ages from five to ninety in terms of petting.

"As your superior, you're obligated to answer all questions I ask you," Cato said.

Peeta scowled. "Gods, you're such a piece of work," he said, barging past him. He left Cato standing in the clearing, completely stunned, and went back to camp. What was up with that guy? He was almost bi-polar with his attitude and occasional arrogance. One minute he'd be kind and charming and then the next he'd be talking to him like he was nothing but dirt.

He was nearly back at camp when he saw Gale coming in through the opposite direction. Peeta immediately dropped to the ground, landing on his ass. Gale liked him on the ground-mostly because his face would be level with his crotch- so every time they passed or met up, he'd be sitting down. Immediately noticing him, the beta wolf smiled, stopping to scruff his hair. "Hey Peeta," he said.

"Hey Gale," he replied, trying to sound upbeat.

"I saw you in the clearing earlier," Gale said casually. Peeta scrunched up his nose, frowning at the ground. When had he been in the woods? He obviously hadn't seen him with Cato because if he had, he wouldn't even be sparing the time to say hey. He'd already be on his face getting his brains smacked out of him or . . . worse. "How come you don't tell anyone that you can . . . you know-" He waved his arms around his head in what Peeta could only decipher as a reference to his stretches.

"I don't know," he shrugged. "I just didn't . . . I don't know . . ." _Because I didn't want any of you assholes using it to your advantage!_

"It's a real talent you have there," Gale said. "I wouldn't hide it if I were you."

"But that's just it, you're _not_ me. You don't know what it's like to sit in your tent and wonder who was going to come and screw you next," Peeta muttered.

"Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me."

Delly was right. Gale was a man whore.

Feeling a need for human closeness, Peeta nuzzled his head against Gale's leg. The beta chuckled, pushing his fingers through his hair. After spending so long with Cato, having to watch how he acted or behaved because he knew that he wasn't part of his pack, he wanted nothing else than to have human contact with someone. "Aw, you're too sexy sometimes," Gale said.

The Omega made an irritated sound at the back of his throat. He tried to pull back but Gale kept his hand firmly planted on the back of his head, stoppping him from doing so. "Don't you have somewhere to be?" Peeta muttered.

"I can always spare some time for my favourite member of the pack," Gale replied.

"Katniss?" Peeta asked helplessly.

Gale laughed. "You're funny," he said.

"It wasn't supposed to be funny . . ."

"Come on, stand up." Gale took his hands and hauled him up to his feet. Peeta sighed, risking looking him in the eye. The grey iris' were full of arrogance and lust. Nothing else. No remorse or guilt. Nothing. He walked forward, forcing him to go back, until Peeta's back was pressed firmly against a tree. Gale kissed him, moving his lips roughly against his. Peeta found himself responding quickly, opening his mouth for him and letting him explore his mouth. Gale reached down for the fly of his pants, slowly sliding it down.

"Gale," Peeta murmured, pushing against his shoulders. "Not here."

_What are you doing?_ his instincts screamed_ let him keep going!_

A smack burnt its way across his face and his head jerked to the side, bumping his cheek against the rough bark of the tree. Peeta inhaled and shut his eyes, warding off the tears of pain that sprung up in his eyes while also forcing the moan back down his throat, enjoying the pleasure of being scolded. But _here_? Really? In the middle of the woods? What if someone came along and saw them? Had Cato left yet? What if he saw them? Wait, why did it matter if Cato saw them?

"Yes, here," Gale said through gritted teeth. "I can't go back to camp, I'm on patrol, so we're doing it here against this tree whether you like it or not." He smirked. "But you always like it in the end."

_Yes, I damn well do._

Peeta inhaled his own spit when Gale curled his fingers over his crotch over his jeans, a sound stuck between a purr and a moan escaping his mouth. "You see," he purred. "You like that don't you?" Letting his head fall back against the bark of the tree, Peeta sighed and let Gale kiss his neck. He parted his legs and let Gale rest between them, putting his weight on the tree.

"Galeeee," he moaned, gasping for air when the beta wolf rutted against him, pushing him up the tree. His feet skimmed the ground and he yelped, squirming against the weight against his body. "Not in t-the woods Gale _please_."

Gale had him caged, prey caught in a trap, when something made him freeze. He took a long sniff of the air and growled, baring an impressive set of canines. Peeta shrank back, thinking he'd pissed him off, willing to let him do anything as long as he didn't bite him. "Oak," Gale murmured.

"What?" Peeta asked apprehensively, his eyes sealed shut.

"The wolf from 2 is close," Gale muttered.

Peeta's heart fluttered like a bird trapped in a cage. "What?" he repeated fearfully. Why was Cato still here? Shouldn't he have the common sense to _leave_? "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Get back to camp and get the others," he said.

"Gale, maybe it's not the-"

Gale looked at him angrily, eyes flashing into wolf slits. "Are you defying me?" he asked, his voice a low growl. Peeta swallowed fearfully and shook his head. "Get the others." Gale pushed away from the tree, leaving Peeta feeling flustered and used. Not wanting to get into his bad books though, he did as he was told and ran back to camp. He told the first person he stumbled upon-after falling to his knees and nuzzling against the ground-that the wolf from 2 was around and that Gale needed backup.

When a couple of others members of the pack went out to investigate, Peeta crawled back to his tent. He picked up the piece of a broken mirror that he had found on the ground a year ago and looked at himself through it. He looked severely like a hooker after a night on the streets. His cheeks were flushed pink and his hair was messed up. His lips were swollen and his neck was covered in hickeys, not deep enough that they broke skin. "You're a disgusting excuse for a wolf," he said to his reflection. "There's something severely wrong with you, you slut."

He hurled the mirror across the tent and kicked the ground. Gale saw him stretching. He was going to tell everyone and then they'd have him doing it for them. Like some damn dog doing tricks for his owners. Something cold dripped down his face and he reached up and dabbed his cheek, frowning when he found water on his finger tips.

_Crying? Really?_ his instincts scoffed._ Don't pity yourself you idiot, you enjoy being a slut. It's part of who you are, embrace it, don't push it away._

"Shut up!" Peeta snapped, slapping himself. His instincts were like a whole another person living inside his head. Niggling at his thoughts and taunting him with insults. Thankfully, that part of him couldn't take complete control, he had a firm hold on the reins of his mind. It didn't shut the instincts up either way though. He couldn't even cry without them insulting him. His mother had always told him it was a sin to cry. That it was a sign of weakness and was inexcusable. It was fitting, since his mother might as well have been made of stone when it came to emotions.

Peeta had been raised by a strong family. His mother being a beta and his father and brothers being alphas, a lot was expected of him when he came to the age of discovering what rank he was. Throughout a wolf's childhood, there would be hints at what their rank would be. When he looked back on it, he supposed he should have been able to tell that he was going to be an Omega. As a child, he was able to bend like no one else could, like-as Cato said-he was boneless. But coupled with the defiant attitude he had, nobody thought twice about his flexibility. They thought he'd still make it as a beta.

Nope.

When he found out that he was an Omega wolf, his mother had been the most disappointed. His father had accepted it and so had his brothers but his mother never looked at him that same way. Peeta guessed it was because everyone had believed that herself and his father had a strong gene pool until he was born and ranked. Even though she was applauded for giving them their first male Omega, she didn't like it and forced his father and brothers to treat him like dirt just as she believed he should be treated.

Now they were dead.

His father had died of a heartattack and his mother followed soon after when she contracted an infection in a severe wound she'd obtained on a hunt. His brothers were mauled by wild animals, also on a hunt. He was on his own now, living in a tent that was haunted with their ghosts. He would sometimes wonder what his mother would think of him now. Rolling over for every member of the pack. Keening and licking and letting anyone screw him if they wanted, no matter what their background was. He wondered how many times she had turned in her grave.

A presence in his tent made the hair at the back of his neck stand up. Sighing, he turned around, wondering who it was this time.

Only to be hit by the smell of Oak.

"Cato?"

The alpha grinned. "Hello Peeta."

**A/N: For any of you waiting on an update on Chafed, I'm working on it. Just having a small case of writer's block. So please bear with me (:**

**Please R&R with your thoughts! :D**


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N: Sorry for the long wait for the update. I kind of took a hiatus for Christmas, I hope that's alright? Anyway, here's chapter four! (-:**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games.**_

_**Warnings: Submission/Dominance, abuse, sadistic ideas that may be unsettling to some.**_

Chapter Four

"You can't be here!"

Cato frowned, as if that wasn't the response he was expecting. Peeta was horrfied. What was he doing?! Why was he _here_? He could get killed by the pack if he wasn't not careful! How long ago had they left? When were they coming back? Did he still have a shot at getting the hell off their territory?

"What the hell is _wrong_ with you?!" he exclaimed. "Do you have a death wish?! You could get killed! You need to get out of here now!" Peeta felt his knees knobble together fearfully and he knew he was going to be sick again. "This is suicide!"

"Technically, _not_ coming here would be suicide," Cato replied. "Your pack have taken over half of the forest. It was either go through your camp, or get caught by them. And I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to see you again. Of course, I went through ten empty tents just to find you and had almost given up hope. Thank god, too, I didn't know where else I could hide until they moved on."

Peeta looked at him incredulously. "What are you going to do when they come back? You've probably left your scent all over the camp! Even if you got away, they'd know you've been here! You're so reckless for an Alpha, do you know that?"

"Why do you think I came to you?" Cato asked. "The scent of an Omega can mask my pack's scent for a lifetime. Also I _really_ wanted to see you again."

"You're wrong. When I first ran into you in the forest nearly everyone could smell the Oak on me," Peeta protested.

"Well, you see, I was hoping you'd change into a wolf," Cato explained. "Because then your scent will be stronger and would mask the oak?"

Peeta folded his arms indignantly. "What makes you think I'll do that?" he asked. "How do you know I won't just howl for the others to come back? I am capable of that, you know." If an Omega was in distress, they had the ability to howl so loud that the closest beta wolf will hear, no matter where they were or how far away they were.

"I know you're capable of it," Cato replied. "But you're not going to do it."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because I know you and you won't do it."

Peeta clenched his fists, shaking in a mixture of rage and desire. The voice at the back of his head was screaming at him, telling him do what Cato told him to and turn into a wolf. But why? Was he right? Could the scent of an Omega in wolf form mask the oak smell of Cato's pack? Shaking his head, Peeta refused to even consider it.

It was then he noticed the blood dripping down Cato's arm.

"You're hurt," he stated.

The alpha inspected his arm like it was a speck of dust in a desert. "Yeah, your damn boyfriend took a swipe at me when I distracted him from you," he explained. "I honestly didn't think it was that bad." The blood dripped off his hand and pooled on the ground. Peeta watched it in horror, fascinated by how Cato barely showed any pain. "Still, that guy's probably so pretentious he sharpens his claws or something like that."

"Boyfriend?" Peeta asked faintly.

"That guy who was basically raping you in the woods?" Cato asked back.

"Oh . . . no, he wasn't my boyfriend," Peeta said. "That's just Gale. He . . . he's just . . ."

"A horny a-hole?" Cato suggested.

"Uh . . ." Peeta frowned. "What do you mean distracted him from me?"

Cato shrugged, an easy smile on his face. "You didn't want it," he said. "But he kept going. I couldn't watch it so I got close enough so he'd smell me and leave you alone. It was disgusting, how he treated you. I'd never realized that's how it looked when we treated Omegas like shit."

"Yeah, well, it is," Peeta muttered. Rolling his eyes, he unfolded his arms and stretched them out. He knew the sooner he changed, the sooner he'd mask Cato's scent and the wolf would leave. Dropping to his hands and knees, he changed. Being in wolf form was always better than human form. There was more freedom, the ability to run forever and take on anything. Within reason, obviously.

The only time Cato had saw him in wolf form was when they had first met in the forest. There hadn't really been time to go over the general problems in his head, the kinks within himself that made him such a poor example of a wolf, since he was so distracted with the need to keep himself alive. But as Cato scrutinized him now, with the air of a man who was going to take his damn time, all the kinks went through Peeta's head.

_You're small for a sixteen year old wolf. A runt._

_Your knees are knobbly._

_Your fur is too bright._

_Your whiskers are too long._

_You always tremble like a bitch about to be slapped._

Cato stepped towards him, causing a jolt to shock through Peeta's spine, forcing his knees to buckle underneath him so he'd lay down in front of the alpha. It seemed that his body had started taking matters into its own hands, since his mind was too damn logical for his own good. Maybe things would be easier if he could just let himself forget. Let himself be consumed by an Omega's desire to be a champion slut. He'd always try. But he'd never succeed.

When Cato stroked his head, he flinched, not letting the voices that told him to submit get a hold of him. "Thank you," the alpha said softly. "Believe me, I didn't come here to cause trouble. Your pack practically chased me around the bend before I decided to come here. It would be the last place they'd think to look, don't you think?"

Peeta nodded. It was true. Why would the pack come back to camp to look for a wolf from 2 that was in the forest? It was silly. Cato continued to stroke him, threading his fingers through his fur and brushing it. "You're so small," he said, his voice hushed and slightly awed. "It's hard to believe you're of age to even know your rank."

Peeta hated being a runt. He hated being small and fragile. It just boosted the Omega image to everyone else. 'Look at the baby wolf, he needs constant care.' Care, which they believe, is being constantly screwed. They actually believe they're doing him a service by having sex with him. He couldn't understand it. Somtimes he'd wonder if he'd be the same, if he had been ranked a Beta and there was an Omega in camp. Would he try to fuck them the way the others fucked him? Thinking he was doing a good thing?

"We wouldn't treat you like crap back in 2," Cato said. "I'd make sure everyone treated you properly. We could teach each other to control ourselves and you'd eventually fit in with us. Plus, if I bit you, then no one else could touch you anyway."

That may be how it worked in 2 but not 12. Because of the rarity of a male Omega, even in being bitten they were still fair game. Delly was different because she was a girl. Now that Darius has mated her, she's no longer on the table. She can control herself better and doesn't need to roll over for anyone who passes her. Peeta guessed that maybe he would stay the same once he was bitten because if someone managed to get him pregnant, he'd give birth to the strongest offspring the pack would have in years. And when stripped down to the core, every species main goal is to reproduce, no matter what.

Basic instinct.

Why did everything always come back to instinct?

Cato scratched behind his ear and Peeta found his insides melting. _Gods_, that was such a sensitive spot. When he stopped, he whined, nuzzling his head back into his hand. Cato chuckled and stratched again, patting his muzzle affectionately. "Is it true that you can get pregnant?" he randomly asked. Peeta blinked at him, tilting his head curiously. "Is that a yes?"

Peeta nodded.

"How does that even work?" Cato frowned. "I mean the . . . birthing process . . ."

The Omega in him wanting to get closer to him and the oridinary person inside him wanting to answer the question, Peeta pushed his head forward and trailed his nose down from Cato's navel to the waistband of his pants. The smell of oak invaded his senses and he huffed, trying to keep it out. Even if he could mask the scent with his own, it didn't stop him from smelling it. Cato watched him, running his hand up and down his back at the same time.

"So, something happens along here then?" he asked, tracing the area Peeta just pointed out. The wolf whined, a clear yes. The truth was when in labour a slit would appear from the navel down to the waist so that the pup could be extracted. Healers were normally the best people to do it since no one else had any medical experience. This was another reason why Peeta did not want to be inpregnanted. He didn't want any slits appearing in him so Katniss' mother could pull a pup out of him! "I see."

Peeta rested his head on his leg, sighing. How long would it take to mask a scent? As much as he enjoyed the way Cato was scratching his ears, he felt constantly on edge in case someone came back. Then again, if someone did come back, he'd smell them. He guessed that Cato probably would too. Still, he couldn't help being on edge either way. Every snap of a twig or rustling of leaves made his ears prick up in wonder.

"You need to calm down, I'll know when your pack are coming back," Cato said. "I may have been stupid enough to come into your camp but I'm not stupid enough to not know when to leave."

_You can't let him leave,_ the voices at the back of his head whispered. _You haven't even rolled over for him yet._ Peeta twitched, trying to jerk the thoughts out of his head without drawing Cato's attention to it.

"Thank you," Cato said. "For doing that for me."

_No problem at all, _the voice purred in a sultry tone. _Anything for you baby._ Peeta whined, flattening his ears as if to ward off the thoughts. Cato frowned at him, probably wondering what the hell was wrong. He stroked his head gently, staring at him with an unwavering gaze that made him feel small. Peeta wanted to return the look but he couldn't look at the alpha for more than five seconds before ducking his head again and staring dead ahead. Cato held an air that was intimidating and demeaning. He did it without trying and it made Peeta worry about sort of guy he really was. What if this was all an act? Trying to lure him away to 2 where he would reveal himself to be just as bad as everyone else.

Evergreen filled his senses and he lifted his head. Cato sniffed the air as well, another frown knitting its way onto his features. "I'll go out back," he said, giving his head one last pat. "I'll be back, I promise." He lifted the back of the tent and climbed out from there. Peeta watched him leave, knowing without a doubt that he was not kidding when he said that he'd be back. Was that a good thing? Or a dangerous thing? He wasn't sure but there was a feeling of elevation that came hand in hand with idea of seeing Cato again.

He was barely gone two minutes before Katniss came into his tent. She was naked-obviously having just turned back from wolf form-and looked exhausted. "I give up!" she exclaimed. "I give _fucking_ up!" Peeta changed back himself and frowned. What was wrong? What had happened?

"What's wrong Katniss?" he asked her.

"Gale," Katniss said angrily. "He's leaving again _tonight._ He won't even give me proper excuses anymore. 'I'm on patrol', what the hell? He was on patrol earlier! He's lying to me puppy, I swear. I bet you any money he's cheating on me." Peeta lowered his gaze to the ground. He worried that Katniss may have been able to see through him, see that it was him who her boyfriend went to every other night. But she didn't. She just continued to rant. "I left the hunt once he'd told me. The dickhead decided it'd be best to tell me while we were out sniffing the location of 2 wolf. How fucking dare him, right?"

"Maybe he wasn't coming back from the hunt," Peeta suggested. "I mean, sometimes Undersee _does_ give out extra patrol hours?"

Katniss' face crumpled and she fell to the ground helplessly. "You're right," she said. "Why am I always so quick to accuse him? Why do I always have a feeling that he's betraying me? Am I a horrible person? I obviously don't trust him."

"You're not a horrible person Katniss," Peeta instantly said.

"But I am," Katniss insisted. "I came here to get back at him, I didn't come here with confidence that you'd give me proper advice. What would a goddamn Omega know about love? I was going to go to Delly after you. _I am _a horrible person."

Peeta frowned. "You came back here to get back at him?" he asked slowly.

"Yeah! If Gale could cheat on me, I could cheat on him, right? Except nobody wants me except for you, if I told you to," Katniss said. "Gale doesn't even touch me anymore. I've just missed a man's touch for so long." Peeta couldn't help feeling hurt that she had thought that. But . . . she was right. If she stood up right now and told him to roll over, he'd do it, and he'd let her do what she wanted to do. Why did he think that she was different? Everyone in this camp were the same.

Except, he felt a pull towards her, despite his anger, and when she moved forward and kissed him, he didn't want to stop her. _A fuck is a fuck,_ the voice at the back of his head insisted._ Just ignore the fact that the wolf's a bitch._ Katniss sighed into his mouth, pushing her hand into his hair and taking one of his into her own. "Touch me," she breathed.

Peeta screwed up his eyebrows in concentration. What did women like again? It had been a while . . . Sensing his hesitance, Katniss brought his hand down underneath to her slick folds. Oh yeah. Peeta resisted the urge to gag. There was no doubt in his mind that he was gay so the sight of breasts and wetnes made him feel sick. Not sick enough to stop but sick enough to feel horrified afterwards. As the voice had said, _A fuck's a fuck._

Katniss moaned when he pushed a finger inside her, resting her head in the crook of his neck and lapping at his skin like he was a dish of water. "Oh god, yeah," she moaned, rocking against his hand. "I missed this so much."

_Just get through it, you'll be alright once she's done. Maybe she'll even give you something back, eh?_ The voice said. Peeta shut his eyes tight, fighting the voice as much as he could manage. 'Shut up, shut up, shut up, leave me alone you goddamn parasite!' he begged in his mind. 'There is nothing right about this! Stop coming up with excuses to make yourself feel better you self-righteous little whore!'

"Katniss?" Peeta blinked and Katniss was off him within a blink of an eye. Gale stood in the threshold of the tent, looking thoroughly pissed off. "What are you doing here Katniss?!" he yelled.

"Gale, I wasn't-it's not what it looks like!" Katniss exclaimed, leaping to her feet desperately. Peeta stayed sitting on the ground, staring dumbly at his hand which Katniss had been seated upon just a moment ago. He didn't know what Gale was playing at, yelling at Katniss the way he was. He betrayed Katniss in the exact same way Katniss betrayed him. Through the camp whore, the Omega, _him_.

"Get out of here you slut!" Gale yelled at a crying Katniss, pushing her out of the tent angrily. When she was gone, he turned to look at Peeta, the rage in his eyes matching the anger he had towards Katniss moments ago. Peeta wasn't scared, he learnt not to be scared long ago. Because he knew what happens to him when pack members got angry at him for being . . . well . . . _him_. "What the hell was that?!" Gale demanded.

"I was doing what I always do," Peeta answered simply. "Letting people do what they want."

"But to _her?_ To _Katniss_?" Gale yelled.

"To anyone," Peeta answered in a measured voice. "You're not special in any shape or form Gale. You're not the only one who comes to me, you know." He was trying to keep his tone straight because if he yelled at him, expressed the actual anger he felt towards him, then he'd either throw up, get slapped, or be beaten to a pulp. There's no dignity in that. No dignity at all.

"I should be," Gale snapped. "I have a right mind to bite you for this."

Peeta scowled. "No. You can't do that," he said. Gale grabbed his hair and yanked him up to his feet. Peeta yelped in pain and grabbled at the hand that had an iron grip on his hair. "Gale-ow-let go, please, ow, ow, ow. GALE!"

"You little slut," Gale growled. A shadow had been cast across his face, darkening his features. "You fingered Katniss, _Katniss?"_

"She told me too!" Peeta groaned, trying to pry his hand off his hair. "It turns out your girlfriend is no better than you!" Gale tugged so hard that it felt like his hair was going to pull out of the roots. He growled and let go of his hair, pushing him to the ground just in time for him to throw up for the comment.

"Look at you," Gale scoffed. "You're a mess."

Peeta shut his eyes and pressed his forehead against the ground. He knew this was going to happen at one point, that Gale was going to snap, he just didn't expect it to happen so soon. He heaved himself off the ground and sat up on his knees. "You going to hit me then?" he asked weakly. "Get it over with?"

"I'm not going to hit you," Gale said.

Peeta frowned. "What?"

"I'm going to fuck you."

Peeta shut his eyes. "Can't you just hit me?" he asked feebly.

Gale rolled his eyes. "Hands, knees, _now._ You need to be punished."

"For what exactly? Doing what I'm supposed to? You're just angry that it was Katniss who came to me. Why does it even matter? She said you barely touch her anyway and I sure as hell know where you go every other night. What's it to you that she finally came to me like you've been doing for months now? I'm surprised she didn't give in sooner."

"You think your life is so difficult don't you?" Gale said, looking down on him as if he was a cockroach in his path. "Did you know in the next pack over, pack 11? They don't believe in strong offspring through Omegas, they preferr women birthing pups. If they ever got their hands on you, you'd be tied down onto a sacrifical alter to be sacrificed to the gods. They'd kill you in a second."

Peeta narrowed his eyes. "You're lying," he said.

"What would I get from lying about something like that?" Gale asked.

"I don't know, the joy of seeing me scared?"

Gale laughed. "Ha ha, that's a good one. But no, I'm serious. 11 wolves sacrifice Omegas. It's very brutal how they do it and all. So count your scars you were born into this pack buddy, being fucked doesn't seem as bad in hindsight."

"In hindsight of what exactly? What do they do?" Peeta really wanted to know what they were talking about. "What do you mean it's brutal?"

Gale smirked. "They like to use the internal blood of the Omega to paint sacrifical symbols onto the body but they couldn't just stick a blade into you because then you'd bleed out and die before they could pray to make the gods aware of the fact that they were sacrificing something. So instead of stabbing you they'd either force your mouth open and shove the sword down your throat far enough to cut some blood out of you but not far enough to make you choke."

"That couldn't possibly be true. Sticking a sword down your throat would kill someone," Peeta protested.

"Not if it's done correctly," Gale answered. "But, sometimes Omegas refuse to open their mouths so they get the blood . . . another way."

Peeta gulped. "Another way?" he asked. "What way?"

"Even _I'm_ not going to get into it," Gale replied. "It's disgusting. So once they got the blood out they'll paint the symbols, wind you up a bit maybe, pray to the Gods then stab you. Right through the heart."

'Well, at least I wouldn't be tormented every day,' Peeta thought.

"Now, enough chit-chat loverboy," Gale said. "As I said before, hands, knees, _now."_

~xXx~

"Warren is ill."

Peeta lifted his head from the ground and blinked groggily. Gale had left about an hour ago after practically tearing him apart. His head felt heavy and he felt like he had bled out. "Huh?" he asked, his voice hoarse and tired.

Katniss didn't look him in the eye. Instead she looked dead ahead, at the back of the tent. "Warren is ill. We fear he's on his death bed. He wants to see you."

Him? Why would Warren want to see him? With a confused frown, Peeta pushed himself off the ground. He winced in pain as he got up and Katniss turned on her heel to leave immediately, refusing to stay any longer than he had to. Peeta accepted the fact that he had probably lost a friend in what his stupid instincts let him do last night. He followed her through the camp to Warren's tent, walking with a slight limp.

The wolves steered clear of him, knowing that there was important business to attend to and there wasn't time for him to roll over and keen at them. Katniss kept a distance between them, treating him like last night was all his fault. Even if it had been, Peeta had certainly suffered his punishment. Gale had made sure of it.

"Go on in," Katniss said curtly.

Peeta nodded and entered Undersee's tent, slightly worried. Why had he asked for him in particular?

Warren did look sick. He was completely debilitated, lying on his bed, looking like a ghost of himself. Upon seeing him, he smiled. "Peeta," he sighed. "Come here, pup." Bowing to show his respect, Peeta approached the alpha apprehensively. Warren held out a weak hand, wrapping it around Peeta's own, the smile never leaving his face. "You okay?"

"Y-Yes Master Undersee," Peeta stuttered. "A-Are you o-okay?"

"Never better," Warren chuckled hoarsely. "My Madge always said that you'll never feel the most alive until the moment before you die."

Peeta's heart almost stopped. "You're not going to die, Master Undersee," he said. "Right?"

"So frightened. I can feel you pulse beating in your wrist. Don't be so scared child," Warren said. "There is no need to fear death. Life is the most scary of all. Before I die, you must promise me something child, can you do that for me?"

"Anything Master Undersee."

"Don't let those wolves take over your life. You've got spark, kid, don't let them dampen it. You find someone you want to be with and you have your pups. Don't let them make your decisions for you," Warren said. "You may be an Omega but you don't have to roll over for everyone. It may be difficult at first but you have to try, okay?"

What did he mean? Was he telling him to fight against who he was? Against his instincts? Was that even possible? Peeta knew he couldn't ask him all this now. He was on his deathbed, asking him this one thing so instead he nodded. "Okay Master Undersee, I'll try, I promise."

"Good boy," Undersee said. "I knew you'd obey. Now, send Katniss back in, I have to talk to her too."

"O-okay." Peeta couldn't leave any faster. He practically stumbled out of Warren's tent, heart pounding. Katniss was waiting for him, arms folded to cover her chest. She'd fashioned a piece of leather to tie around her waist to look like a skirt. "He wants to see you," he told her. She scowled at him, as if he'd just called her a rude name or something, and pushed past him to get into the tent.

Peeta sighed, wondering if he was going ruin anyone else's life before he died. He turned around and instantly bumped into someone. Whoever it was, they were built like a brick house, and he fell backwards onto the ground. He looked up at the person he'd walked into, immediately meeting an unfamiliar face.

"Hello little pup," the man said in a deep, gruff voice. The type of voice that made Peeta want to curl up and shrivel up into a ball. Maybe die as well. "Are you the little Omega everyone's talking about?"

"W-w-who are you?" Peeta asked, stumbling through the sentence like a blind fool.

The man smirked. A gruesome grin that made his insides churn. "The name's Thread. I'm the reason Warren's on his deathbed."

Holy shit.

If this man was the reason Warren was dying then . . . once he died . . . this terrifying figure was going to be head of the camp. And, judging by the glitter in his eyes, it was not going to be good.

_**A/N: So did everyone have a nice Christmas? If you celebrate that sort of thing anyway? **_

_**Please R&R! :D**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games**_

Chapter Five

_**One Month Later**_

_**Warren Undersee died exactly 29 days previous, welcoming the reign of Romelus Thread to the pack of 12. The entire dynamic of the pack changed that day; punishments were enforced, rules were written and the wolves, ultimately, were more well behaved. Some claimed it was the kick up the backside the unruly camp needed, others accused their leader of being power hungry and sadistic.**_

_**In one month's time, a mating was going to occur. Thread had staked a claim but believed in the classic tradition of courting a possible partner, of getting to know their mind and body before biting them and getting married. The pack were furious because they couldn't believe the loss.**_

_**Because Thread was going to mate their only unbitten Omega.**_

"For fuck's sake," Peeta muttered, knawing on the rope around his wrists like his life depended on it. It scratched and burned his flesh, causing thin streaks of blood to run down his arms. The rope was connected to a post hammered into the ground, coupled up with a chain that ran from the post to the stupid black collar around his neck.

Thread was a dickhead. As soon as Warren passed on, he immediately took control, not even giving time for a funeral. Peeta did his best to stay out of the leader's way, working on his ability to ignore the wolves demands like Undersee had instructed him to. He found it increasingly difficult but was sometimes able to spit a hateful remark or sarcastic comment without feeling sick. Even if it wasn't much, it was a start.

He had lasted a couple of days without attracting Thread's attention but then, a week after Undersee died, the man had came to his tent and ordered him to follow him. Peeta had followed, not knowing that Thread was taking him to his tent to chain him up and treat him like his own pet. No one else was allowed to touch him anymore, Thread was most definitely possessive. And, in a month's time, the new pack leader was going to bite him and they'd be forever mated together.

It was why he had to get _out._

The rope killed, ruthlessly burning his skin until his wrists went numb. He had gotten used to the pain, this was his third escape attempt after all. Thread was not only a dickhead, but he was strange. Definitely an alpha anyway. He got off on watching others writhe in pleasure, he loved being the reason _for_ the pleasure. Which basically meant it sucked to be Peeta. Then again, it always sucked to be Peeta.

"Out of all the people the damn leader could want," he muttered angrily to himself, giving his bound wrists a tug. "Urgh!" His hands were wrecked, skinned and bloody from trying to work out the knots that Thread had tied. He couldn't even stand up or he'd be choked on the collar which just made everything all the more difficult. Then again, that was probably the idea. He'd tried pulling the post out of the ground but it wouldn't budge, like it had been cemented into the floor.

Giving up, Peeta groaned and pressed his forehead against the cool grass. Footsteps approached the tent, causing him to tense, and he looked up just in time to see Thread enter the tent. There was a giant smile beaming on his face, his whip coiled up and hanging from his belt loops as usual. The sight of the weapon made Peeta's stomach churn uneasily. It always did. There hadn't been whippings in the pack for years, long before Warren had been in control, long before he had even been born, really. But Thread had changed that. He basically changed everything.

"How's my sexy pet today, hmm?" Thread asked, taking his chin between his thumb and forefinger, jerking it up so their eyes met. Peeta glowered at him, a low growl resonating from the back of his throat. He was getting better at the defiance thing, hoping it was making Warren proud where-ever the gods had decided to take him. Thread smirked at his annoyance none the less, rewarding it with a smack across the face. Peeta winced and bit his lip, trying not to give him the enjoyment of showing pain.

Thread didn't pay any heed to the condition of his hands, very likely having given up on scolding him for trying to escape. "I brought you the scraps," he said, holding out his hand which had a pile of entrails sitting on it. Peeta curled his lip in distaste. The gesture reminded him of Katniss, who's friendship he hadn't been able to mend before Thread had decided that he should take up permanant residence inside his tent.

"I'm not hungry," he said indignantly.

Thread shrugged, messily eating the entrails himself. Peeta refused the urge to blanch, jerking his chin out of his master's grasp and moving to curl up on the ground. However, he was prevented from doing so when Thread grabbed his elbow. He looked at him in wonder and irritance, knowing what was coming but not really wanting to believe it. Thread smiled, almost lovingly if that were possible, and stroked his cheekbone with his thumb. "I just love how bright your eyes are," he said. "Especially when you look at me like that, knowing you're about to get fucked."

Peeta huffed, the Omega at the back of his head awakening and whispering, _"Oh, I bet he's going to refer to your ass as his dessert again."_ The hair at the back his neck pricked up when the voice spoke, since it had been absent for so long a part of him had believed it had gone for good. Sadly, he was not that lucky.

Thread untied the rope around the post and unhooked the chain connecting the collar, kneeling down in front of him and tugging him up to eyelevel. The Omega side of him trembled in excitement while the ordinary, rational side screamed at him to use the chance to escape. The leader's eyes flicked from his eyes to his lips and back up again. "I've had my dinner but now I think it's time for dessert," he purred.

_"And boom goes the dynamite,"_ the voice said smugly.

Thread wound an arm around his lower back, pushing against his chest so that he'd bend backwards. Peeta cursed the day Gale blurted out to the entire camp that he was practically a contortionist. Keen to keep his master happy though, he did as he was told and bent backwards over his arm until the crown of his head touched the grass. His bones cracked for the first time that day and he resisted the urge to moan at how good it felt.

"I love the way you move," Thread purred. Glad that he couldn't see his face from this angle, Peeta rolled his eyes in distaste. 'Yeah, and so does everyone else in camp' he thought. A set of lips pressed against the sensitive skin of his stomach, a wet tongue swirling over the muscles and mapping out his torso slowly. It felt so good, he couldn't deny it, and a small whimper escaped from his mouth. He arched his back, pushing himself further up into his master. Thread smirked, biting one of his nipples teasingly.

"A-ah, m-mas-master," he stuttered, yelping when Thread let go of him, letting him fall backwards onto the ground. Because he was so mallable, his legs were still tucked underneath him when his back made contact with the slightly wet grass, but Thread quickly grabbed his knees and lifted them up, spreading his legs so he was completely exposed to him. Peeta whined when the cold air touched his intimacy, knowing immediately what his master was going to do.

It had been exactly a month since someone other than Thread had fucked him. It had gotten to the point that he could anticipate every move his master was going to make on him. A nail dragged down his inner thigh, the gentle touch making a pleasureable jitter rush down his spine. _"Just a little bit closer,"_ the voice at the back of his head goaded. Peeta moaned as if he could drown out the voice, making Thread believe that it was a noise of pleasure instead of an attempt at drowning out his Omega whore voice.

"What do you want little pet?" Thread teased. "Tell me what you want."

"Touch me master please," he begged, disgusted in himself but needing it desperately anyhow. "Please, I need it so much, _please_ master, please."

Thread smirked like the self satisfied asshole he was. This was probably the most action he'd gotten in his entire life, this past month. He'd probably struck gold now that he'd found an Omega to mess around with. Gods, it made Peeta feel so dirty. He sometimes wondered where Cato was. He hadn't seen him since that night in his tent. He wondered if the alpha still wanted him or whether he had given up on him yet or not. He probably had. The pack leader wanted to claim him. _The pack leader._ Cato couldn't defy that, even if he was a leader himself.

Peeta lost his train of thought when Thread's face disappeared between his thighs and his tongue started worming its way into his entrance. The whore in him moaned, his hands buring themselves into his hair while he arched his back in pleasure. "Oh master," he keened, his knees locking together to keep his head where it was. "Oh, don't stop!" The tongue went in deeper and brushed his prostate, pressing down against it when he yelped and bucked his hips.

His master pulled away, rewarded with a whine of protest, and flipped him around so he lay on his stomach. Glad to not have to look at him, Peeta clenched his fists and panted like a little slut. He supposed he wasn't too much of a slut anymore since he didn't sleep around with everyone, just with one person, but the consistancy of the sex just made him feel all the more like a whore.

If there was one feature he had that everyone who screwed him seemed to love, it was his ass. Thread was the worst, forever grabbing and massaging his cheeks, fondling and pinching the tender skin between his fingers. Even when he'd just be sitting in his lap or lying ontop of him at night, his hands always found their way down south to cup his backside. It made Peeta feel even more disgusted but what could he do? It wasn't like he could tell him to get his hands the hell off his junk. That wasn't how it worked.

Peeta could practically hear his master lick his lips at how vulnerable he probably looked right that minute. He yelped when he groped his ass-surprised with himself for not seeing it coming-but quickly replaced the sound with a moan when he spread his cheeks and started licking him out again. Oh, it felt so good. Peeta purred, lifting his hips up and silenting begging Thread to do it already. His master chuckled, pleased with his enthusiasm.

When Thread entered him, he pushed right in until his hips bumped against his ass, not even giving him a chance to adjust before thrusting. Being used to this, Peeta shut his eyes and pressed his forehead against the grass, moaning in ecstasy at the feeling of his master inside of him. "Oh gods," his master groaned, holding onto his hips so tightly he was probably going to leave bruises. "You're so tight."

_"And you're so biggggg,"_ Omega voice groaned back.

Thread slowed down, thrusting in slowly and pausing, making sure that he pressed himself against his prostate for at least five seconds or more before thrusting out again. He'd pushed in so hard that sometimes Peeta's knees were lifted off the ground slightly, only to come down against once he pulled back out. Shit, it felt good. The slow, dragging it out really kept him hanging by a thread-no pun intended-waiting for the next hit that would send the ecstasy back up through his being.

"Master Thread?" Someone called from outside. Peeta's heart stopped at the sound of the voice, the Omega in him immediately draining out and his proper self taking over again. The proper self that got flustered and embarrassed when it came to sex.

"Come on in," Thread grunted. Peeta groaned-this time not in pleasure-because he hated it when his master would just let people waltz on in while they were screwing. To make matters worse, it was Gale. "What do you want beta?"

Gale clenched his jaw, keeping his eyes focused on Thread's face and no where else, before answering, "There's finally been a scenting of the 2 wolf again. The forest smells of Oak again." Peeta's heart soared, his thoughts automatically going to Cato. What the hell was wrong with him? He had a master now. He was going to be mated by the head of the camp. He shouldn't be getting excited over Cato anymore.

Sighing irritably, Thread pulled out of Peeta, leaving him annoyed and unsatisfied. "Fine, I'm coming," he said. He grabbed the rope around his wrists, re-tying it around the post, before doing the same with the collar's chain. "You be good now, my pet, we'll finish this off later." He punctuated the point with a smack on the ass that made Peeta faceplant the dirt.

When he left Peeta groaned tiredly, irritated that he didn't at least let him cum before he disappeared. Now he was lying here, in the evening light of the tent, with an aching hard on that was going to kill him. He couldn't even finish himself off because his hands were bound to the damn post. There was the option of rubbing himself against the ground but he hated the idea of humping anything, it was too vulgar a move.

"Fuck everything," he muttered to himself, closing his eyes and thinking about old grannies to get his arousal to go down. Eventually it worked and he twisted around onto his back, sitting up awkwardly and using his foot to drag his pants over to himself. Since Thread wasn't going to be back for a while, he could risk dressing himself. His master liked to have him naked in the tent because it's apparently 'a sin to cover up such a delicious frame'. It was hard getting his trousers back on with no hands to help but he managed to wiggle himself into them eventually.

Then he just lay on his back with his arms above his head, staring at the orange material of his master's tent and thinking about how he got to this point in his life. He had everything and nothing. Being mated by the pack leader such be an honour, not a curse. But does it really count because the only reason they want him is because of his submissive nature? He had always thought that he would be mated by someone who wanted him for who he was not just by the way he looked. But that all went to hell when he discovered he was an Omega.

Peeta closed his eyes and thought of Cato. It had been a month since he had seen him. Did he remember him or had he forgotten? Maybe the wolf that they smelt now wasn't even Cato, just another wolf from 2 who'd decided to test the bounderies. The forest hadn't smelt of Oak ever since Warren had died and Peeta had guessed maybe that was what Cato had been waiting for only he hadn't intended for Warren to have been killed, not just having died of natural causes. Cato seemed to have just been a fleeting dream, the fantasy of someone actually taking an interest in who he was and not demanding for sex immediately.

But that's all dreams were. Dreams.

At one point, he must have fallen asleep, because next thing he knew he was being kissed awake. He was still tired, not wishing to wake up just yet, so he whined at Thread, the whine that asked for a little while longer. He didn't want to be fucked right now, he was sleepy. He was kissed again, slightly rougher this time, hands coming to rest on his bare chest and thighs enclosing his own. He tilted his head up to deepen the kiss, just to keep his master happy, before letting it fall back to the ground.

One of the hands caressed his cheek, tracing the contours of his face with a feather like touch. It felt nice, so nice that he smiled. Thread was never normally this gentle, he must be in a funny mood. A third kiss, the smallest of pressure against his mouth before pulling away. "Peeta, wake up."

Peeta's eyes shot open. That was _not _Thread.

A hand immediately slapped over his mouth, preventing him from screaming for help. Heart hammering inside his chest, his eyes desperately searched the darkness for the assailant. When his vision adjusted, he was shocked to find Cato smiling down at him cheekily, amused with his panic. Peeta felt a wave of assuagement wash over him at the sight of him while also feeling a bit pissed off with him for scaring him like that.

"It's lovely to see those blue eyes again," the alpha said. "I'm going to move my hand now so promise you'll stay quiet?"

Peeta rolled his eyes before nodding. Cato grinned and moved his hand off his mouth. "You kissed me!" he hissed at him.

At least Cato had the decency to look guilty. "Yeah, sorry about that, I couldn't help it," he explained. "You were just lying there, looking so vulnerable, and your lips just looked so damn soft. Like two rose petals. I just had to have one taste."

"You kissed me two more times."

"Then I got addicted."

Right. That wasn't odd at all.

"You're ontop of me," Peeta stated, shifting uncomfortably underneath him.

"Because some dickhead has tied you down," Cato replied. "I mean, is that a collar on you?"

"My master gave it to me," Peeta said indignantly.

Cato raised his eyebrows. "Oh and who's your master then?" he asked.

"Thread, our pack leader. In a month's time he's going to mate me," Peeta explained. The Omega voice at the back of his head was purring at the way Cato's weight was crushing him into the ground. "The collar is his way of marking his . . . uh . . . property."

"What happened to 'no one mates me'? The whole, 'I'm a strong, independent wolf who don't need no mate' thing?"

"I think personal morals kind of go out the window when your _pack leader_ claims you as his own, ties you up in his tent and fucks you brainless every night until you can't feel your legs, telling everyone that's he going to mate you in two months time. It's been a month now and I'm still in hell. I haven't left this tent," Peeta said.

"Good thing I'm here then," Cato grinned. "I'm gonna get you out of here."

"What?!" Peeta exclaimed. "You can't do that! I'm Thread's property now, he's courting me!"

"12 has a pretty mixed up way of courting," Cato commented. He lightly touched the shredded skin of Peeta's wrists, apologizing quietly when he flinched in pain. "Look at your skin, how can you still defend this man after he does that to you?"

"Because he is my master," Peeta said simply. "He does with me as he wishes."

Cato rolled his eyes. "Screw that," he said. "You're coming with me whether you like it or not."

"As much as I'd like to go with you Cato, I can't-" Cato cut him off by kissing him again. This time so hard that he was pinned down into the ground. A fire bloomed in Peeta's gut, sending burning tendrails all over his body. Cato was fierce, making sure that he made his point clear through the kiss. Whether he liked it or not, the wolf from 2 was taking him away wih him.

Re-collecting himself, Peeta ripped his mouth away, taking a deep breath of fresh air. Cato was relentless, kissing the side of his face and descending down to his neck. The Omega voice started niggling again, whispering, _"Thread will never know if you let ths stud kiss you for a bit."_

"I can't go anywhere with you," Peeta found himself mumbling under his breath.

Cato sighed and sat up again. Peeta winced at the way his weight put pressure on his crotch and, despite his clenched teeth, a feeble whine still managed to escape. "I'm sorry but I can't stand around and watch this rubbish anymore. I spent a month just observing, not anymore. You're coming with me."

"Hold on, _what?_ You spent a month . . . observing? Observing what?!" Peeta exclaimed in alarm. He huffed in petulance when Cato didn't answer immediately, instead reaching over him to work on getting the ropes undone. "Cato, answer the quest-ow!"

"Sorry," Cato winced, not pausing his work but pulling a bit softer. "As for the answer to your question, I've been watching your camp for the past month because I don't trust that guy Thread. It's been horrifying to watch the way the fucker has treated you, I had no idea he had even decided to mate you. Oh shit the blood is dripping down your arms."

"It does that, I'll be fine," Peeta replied flippantly. "What do you mean been watching the camp, what have you seen?"

"Pretty much everything. And I've been keeping a careful eye on you in particular. You have no idea the amount of times I wanted to charge into this tent and kill your 'master' for the way he treats you. Every time he hit or screwed you, it felt like he was defiling something that belonged to me," Cato explained.

Peeta screwed his eyebrows up in confusion. "What?" he asked. Cato didn't elaborate. The ropes rubbed his wrists and a burn was beginning sting his skin. His hands were cold and there was in doubt in his mind that they were coated in blood. The ropes slowly loosened none the less and eventually pulled off.

"We need to get a salve made for the torn skin," Cato said. He took Peeta's hands and stood up, pulling him up with him. "Can you stand?"

"Yes, I'm an Omega, not an invalid," Peeta said, harsher than intended. The chain chinked around the post in the ground, tugging a bit on his throat but he could still stand up. Cato made the chain look like it was made of rubber, unravelling it around the top and pulling it end off so he had it clenched in his hand.

"Come on then," he said, walking to the back of the tent with the end of the chain still in his hands.

Peeta looked at him incredulously, digging his heels into the ground and almost choking when Cato walked too far so the chain tigthened. Noticing that he wasn't following, the alpha stopped in his tracks and watched in amusement at the way Peeta tugged on the collar. "Don't walk me like a dog," the smaller blond protested, trying to pull off the accessory.

"It's the only way to get you to come with me," Cato replied. He gave the chain an aggressive tug, making Peeta stumble forward and nearly bump into him. A small thrill bristled up his spine at the authority he put into the tug and it took all the strength he had not to fall to his knees in front of the alpha and beg for a fuck. As if noticing his distress, Cato put his hand on the back of his neck and leaned forward to kiss him. Slightly sated, Peeta let him, the fire sparking again in his gut at the simple press of their lips against each other.

"Cato," he said, forcing himself to back away. "I can't go anywhere with you . . it's not right."

"If you come with me then you'll never have to come back and face the music for leaving. Please, I can't leave you behind." Cato spoke quietly, his breath brushing and mingling with Peeta's own. The younger blond was confused. Can't leave him behind? Why not? He wasn't special in any way.

"Why? I'm not anything new. I bet if you left with me, you'd regret it afterwards," Peeta said back, trying to keep his voice at the same noise level as Cato's. "I'd get really annoying, always needing to be put in my place and such. You don't look like the sort who'd want a bitch. You look like a very kind guy . . . for an alpha wolf from 2 anyway. I'm a sick kid, I'm a masochist, you don't want me. You _can_ leave without me-"

"Masochist, huh?" Cato asked, his voice tinged with interest. "Is that where you . . . ?"

"Get off on pain?" Peeta answered bluntly. "Yes."

Cato couldn't fight the smirk from curling its way onto his face. "What sort of pain?" he asked.

Peeta opened his mouth, but no words came out. What did he mean, what _did_ he mean? Were there catagories to pain? "I-I don't . . . know," he answered honestly. "Just pain. Is there different sorts or someth-ouch! What the hell?!" Cato had just pinched him, leaing two crescent indentations on his arm.

"Well, obviously not pinching," the alpha grinned playfully. "What else is there . . ." Peeta yelped when Cato then proceeded to grab his hand and bite it.

"Ow!" he exclaimed. "What's wrong with you?!" He tried to hide the fact that the bite had made his body flush with heat and had made him incredibly flustered. Pulling his hand away, Peeta shoved it under his arm. "You bit me! You can't . . . You can't bite me!"

Cato laughed. "Goodness me, look at you, you're blushing!"

Cheeks flaming, Peeta scowled. "I'm not blushing!"

"Oh my god, you're so cute," Cato teased, cupping the Omega's pink cheeks and smirking. "Your cheeks are creating warmth of their own." Peeta looked down at the ground, smouldering in embarrassment. "So no pinching but likes to be bitten. I think I heard somewhere that Omegas like being bitten because of their desperation to be mated. Do _you_ have a desperation to be mated, _Peeta_?" His voice had dropped several octaves and Peeta swallowed nervously at the look in the alpha's eyes.

"N-n-n-no," he stuttered. "Obviously not. I-I don't want to be mated but I _have_ to be mated. By Thread, which is why I can't come with you."

Rolling his eyes, Cato kissed him again. Fire not just sparking, but completely igniting inside of him, Peeta closed his eyes and pushed closer to him. Cato massaged his lips open with his own, taking a hold of the Omega's bottom lip and biting down on it. The simple action seemed to be executed perfectly, not hard enough to draw blood but hard enough for it _hurt._ Peeta couldn't help himself and moaned, a plea for just that little bit more.

When Cato stopped kissing him, Peeta's mouth felt cold. He clenched his teeth, trying not to give away that he didn't like how quickly it had ended. "Okay, we can't stand around here talking and kissing all night. Your wrists need medical attention so we need to go now," Cato said, turning around and tugging on the chain.

"No!" Peeta exclaimed, everything that was happening suddenly rushing back to him. "I can't go with you, I'm sorry."

Sighing heavily, Cato turned on his heel and lifted him off his feet. Peeta wanted to scream when the alpha threw him over his shoulder but bit his tongue, not wanting Delly to come rushing in and find Cato in his tent. "Put me down!" he hissed, thumping his back angrily. Ignoring him, Cato ducked under the tent and disappeared into the trees with him in his arms. "Cato!"

"Struggle all you like, you're coming with me," the older boy responded.

"I can't!" Peeta exclaimed. "Please, put me down, I have to go back! Thread will kill me if he finds out you've been here! But he'll kill _you_ first!" Cato ignored the younger boy as if he wasn't punching the crap out of him. Peeta felt the usual sickness burning through his being and he gagged. "I'm going to throw up all down your back and I'll be damned if I'm going to clean it up!"

"There's a river a couple miles ahead, if you barf, I'll clean myself up there," Cato said calmly.

"This is kidnapping!" Peeta protested. "Inter-pack kidnapping is illegal! Punishable by death!"

"You're worth the trouble."

"But why?!" Peeta moaned. He was getting tired of struggling, eventually giving up after what felt like hours of walking. Cato practically oozed of his egotistical attitude, very likely smug with his victory of getting Peeta to stop struggling. "I wish I could at least understand why you're so desperate for me to come with you."

"It's complicated," Cato answered. He wasn't being rough or crude, like anyone else who have a chance to mahandle him like this acted. Peeta actually felt quite comfortable with the way the older boy gripped his waist and leg, keeping him balanced on his shoulder. And he never normally felt comfortable with being held but with Cato it was different . . . it always seemed to be different.

Eventually they came to a stop by a river. Peeta thankfully hadn't vomited over Cato's back but the alpha still wanted to wash because he apparently hadn't a chance to for weeks now. He'd asked Peeta if he wanted to wash as well but he'd said no, not wishing to get naked in front of him, even if Cato had already seen it all before.

Cato didn't have a problem with nudity though, taking everything off to get into the river. Peeta didn't look at him, instead turning his back and staring into the distance at the trees. "You're so shy, do you realize that?" Cato laughed. Peeta scowled at the foilage, calculating in his mind how slim the chances of him escaping would be if he took off right now. He couldn't stay here, he had to get back before Thread returned. As much as he longed to do as Cato said and come back with him to 2, he just _couldn't_ do it. Thread was his master now, he had to respect him and his wishes. He had to get back to camp.

Peeta looked behind himself just as Cato ducked under the water, immediately grabbing the chance and getting up off the ground. Morphing into a wolf, he took off back in the direction they came, hoping to the gods that he remembered the way back. Cato had been walking for so long, Peeta was running in foreign ground. He couldn't imagine where he was running, he just prayed that he was at least going in the right direction. Cato better get the idea and go home because if he followed him, it would only be a matter of time before he caught up with him. Peeta was a fast enough runner but compared to an alpha, he might as well been a sloth.

He wasn't sure how long he'd been running for when it hit him. All Peeta knew was that he had been going for much longer than he had when he was over Cato's shoulder. A different scent filled his senses, not oak or evergreen. Pine. Who smelled like Pine?

Peeta slowed down and came to complete stop. His blood ran cold when he suddenly remembered what pack had the designated scent of pine wood.

The pack from 11.

Gale's voice came into his head, his tone low and gruesome.

_"Did you know in the next pack over, pack 11? They don't believe in strong offspring through Omegas, they preferr women birthing pups. If they ever got their hands on you, you'd be tied down onto a sacrifical alter to be sacrificed to the gods. They'd kill you in a second."_

Peeta scrambled backwards, terrified with the realization that if he bumped into anyone from the pack, they'd kill him. How long had he been in 11 territory? Could he get out fast enough? He should never have let Cato take him out of Thread's tent. He turned around, intent on getting the hell out of there, but immediately banged into someone. He looked up, instantly recognizing the mocha fur and bright brown eyes as traits of an 11 wolf. Heart pounding, he stumbled backwards, panicking and tripping over his own paws.

The wolf he bumped into turned back into a human, his skin the same shade of mocha as his fur. He had a malicious gleam in his eyes that made Peeta not wish to stick around to find out why such a gleam was there in the first place. He picked himself up and tried to run but the man grabbed his tail and dragged him back through the dirt.

Peeta wanted to scream but he couldn't, he wanted to howl but couldn't. If he howled, other members of 11 might hear, or some of his own pack members might hear, and he couldn't afford either of them coming. The man from 11, yanked his tail, chuckling darkly when he yelped in pain. "Guys!" he yelled. "I've found another one!"

"Another one?" someone exclaimed. The voice was distinctly female and didn't sound far off.

"Yeah! We got another weakling!" the man shouted. "Tell the others!" Peeta, fuelled completely by fear and adrenalin, lurched forward and bit the man's arm as hard as he could. All the man did was laugh, roughly grabbing the scruff of his neck and burying his muzzle into the dirt. "If that's all you got pup, you better start praying for forgiveness for your sins, because you're going to meeting the Gods very soon."

There was no doubt in Peeta's mind now, Gale hadn't been trying to scare him when he said the 11 pack didn't think Omegas were anything special. They just wanted to sacrifice them.

They were going to sacrifice _him._

And he was helpless to stop them.

**A/N: I feel like this is a 'duh, duh, DUH!' moment, yeah? Ha ha, sorry about the cliffhanger but, well, you know, I'm cruel ^_^**

**Please R&R! :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sorry this took so long. Busy busy and all that. **

**Here's chapter six!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games.**

**Warnings: Inappropriate touching without consent, almost rape, sacrifical rituals, peadophlia, disturbing happenings, spanking and branding.**

Chapter Six

This wasn't how he expected the day to end.

This wasn't how he expected his _life_ to end.

The man from 11 dragged him through the trees, barely noticing his captive struggling. Peeta tried to slow him down as much as he could; digging his heels into the ground and lashing out at him. The man knew the same tricks as Cato, using the pressure points that forced Peeta back into human form to make it easier to move him. As voices got closer, the Omega could feel his heart pounding in his chest and he resulted to one last thing.

"Cato!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. "Cato, help me!" The louder Peeta yelled, the harder the man from 11 pulled him along. They broke out of the treeline into a clearing lit with the faint glow of the few lamps that had been set up. A couple of men were already standing around, preparing a stone slab that was erected in the middle of the clearing.

One of the men came up and greeted them, a cruel smile twisted on his face. "Man, he's a pretty one," he said, looking down on Peeta and making him feel small. The guy holding him chuckled and tightened his grip, forcing a small whine out of the captive.

"I know right," he said. "Maybe we can have some fun before we kill him." Flushed with fear, Peeta lashed out again, scared of what they were going to do with him. The man's grip held fast though and he wasn't ever going to let go of him. "And he's got a nice rump on him, perfect for fucking." A hand slapped his backside, gripping him and painfully squeezing. Peeta flushed in embarrassment and horror, hating that small part of him that sparked at the rough touch.

"And I bet he'd love it too," the other man commented. "Omegas love to be fucked." Curling his lip in disgust, Peeta spat at the man, feeling truimphant when it nailed him in the eye. He immediately regretted it though, as the man growled-an animalistic growl, obviously his wolf tone-and punched him in the stomach. Instantly winded, Peeta keeled over, biting his lip to ward off the urge to moan in pain. The only thing keeping him up was the man who him holding onto his arms still. "I thought Omegas were supposed to be submissive? Are you sure you just haven't got a weak-ass beta here, Dave?"

"No," the man holding him-persumably Dave-replied. "He's definitely an Omega. You can smell it off him." Dragging him to his feet again, Dave pushed Peeta forward, so the other man could smell him. Smirking at the way the blond boy was trembling, the man stepped way too close for comfort and turned his nose into his neck, inhaling deeply. Peeta shut his eyes, trying to pretend that this wasn't happening, it wasn't happening, it wasn't happening . . .

"You're right," the man said. "He reeks of Omega. Pretty impressive. I would have thought he'd be on his knees by now, begging to be screwed." Peeta scowled, unable to pretend that this wasn't happening by the way they were taking about him. He wasn't some sex puppet! "Clear the clearing. I'm going to do this one on my own."

"Are you sure?" Dave asked.

Peeta opened his eyes at the wrong time, just in time to catch the man in front of him smirk. "Positive," he said. Dave handed him over and Peeta immediately took the opportunity to try and escape again. He jerked his arms out of the man's hold and made a break for the trees, not caring what direction he was going in as long as it was away from here. He was so close, nearly breaking the treeline when he was tackled to the ground.

He couldn't wrestle or fight. He didn't know how to. So when one of the other men who'd been setting up the stone altar floored him, Peeta barely got a scratch on him as he struggled to get out of his hold. The man from 11 chuckled darkly, picking him up and dragging him back. Knowing that resistance was futile, Peeta decided to return to his last resort.

"Cato! Cato please help me!" he screamed helplessly. "They're going to kill me, CATO!"

"Oh, we're going to do more than that," the man who'd been teasing him said.

"CATO! PLEASE! I'm sorry I ran off! HELP ME!" Peeta desperately cried into the darkness. A piece of fabric was then jammed into his mouth and tied behind his head, cutting off his voice and gagging his mouth open.

"Can you believe he tried to escape, Gareth?" the man carrying him laughed.

The teasing man-Gareth?-grinned. "The kid's got guts, I'll give him that," he said. The man dropped Peeta carelessly onto the ground. The impact of the fall knocked the air out of his lungs and while the young blond struggled to regain his breath, the other members of the 11 clan left, leaving him alone with Gareth.

"So, who's this Cato guy, huh?" the wolf smirked, grabbing his wrists and dragging him up to his feet. Peeta refused to answer him, narrowing his eyes and staring him down angrily. "Is he your mate?" Grabbing his chin and forcing it up, Gareth found his answer. "Obviously not, you don't have a bite mark. So, is he courting you?"

No answer.

"Or is he just your favourite fuck?"

Peeta flinched, trying not to show that that comment in particular irked him. He'd never even had sex with Cato, so it was definitely not correct, but the fact that he had assumed that he had freaked him out. Made him wonder what sort of relationship he had with Cato anyway. It certainly wasn't platonic, but then, what was it?

Gareth was obviously just trying to get a reaction from him.

The 11 wolf pushed him towards the stone slab, laughing like an evil villain when Peeta freaked out. He was obviously a pedaophile, his hands having the ability only perverts had to be everywhere at once. He lifted Peeta up, not phased by his struggling, and placed him on the altar, grabbing his wrist and restraining it against the top of the stone. Peeta tried to scratch him with his spare hand but Gareth only caught it and pinned it down as well, tying it to the altar as well.

Peeta was at the end of his tether, his shoulder blades digging into the altar when he struggled, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he was on the verge of a panic attack. He shut his eyes and waited for the disgusting ritual Gale described to begin, instead finding nothing happening.

Daring to crack an eye open, he saw Gareth watching him carefully. "Normally," the man began, "I'd try to get the internal blood out through your throat but because you're so defiant, I'm going to do it the other way."

_What's the other way?_ Peeta thought fearfully.

As if able to read his mind, Gareth ran his hand up his bare leg, lightly pressing his finger against Peeta's entrance. The blond freaked out, kicking his hand away from him and struggling to get out of the ties around his wrists. Damn it, he was so helpless. The voices were ordering him to stop, to let himself get fucked until he bleeds by the attractive 11 wolf, but he didn't let the voices win. He couldn't let them win this time.

Gareth had obviously done this a hundred times before. He climbed onto the altar and easily grabbed both his ankles when he tried to knock him back off, pulling them down so his feet pressed against the altar with his knees bent, like a woman about to give birth. Then spreading his legs so he was completely exposed, the 11 wolf bound his ankles to the stone with ropes. Peeta wanted to cry but the tears wouldn't come. Instead, his throat was so sore it felt like it was bleeding and his heart was beating so hard in his chest he feared that Gareth could hear it.

"I'm going to explain how this is going to work," Gareth said. "I'm going to fuck you and then we're going to get on with the ritual."

This _wasn't_ part of the ritual?

"I always screw the Omegas before I kill them," he explained. "Because you're a pack of whores who love it anyway so what's the harm?" What's the harm? _What's the harm?_ Permanant mental scarring, that's the harm! Then again, he was about to die, so why did it matter? Still, Peeta didn't want to die with a hole full of this pervert's seed. That was not how he wanted to go.

He had just about given up when Gareth's finger found it's way back to his entrance when a familiar voice made everything stop.

"Get your paws off my mate."

Oh shit.

It was Thread.

Gareth snarled and hopped off the altar to face the head of 12. "He's ours now, he wandered onto our territory," he said. "We own full rights to him." Peeta didn't dare meet his master's eyes, struggling to free his wrists and ankles instead.

"I'm sorry but when I heard about 11 rituals, nothing was ever mentioned about screwing the subject before killing," Thread said in a low voice. "If you don't hand my mate back to me right now, I'm going to the rest of the pack and telling them what you do to the Omegas. I doubt they'd be too happy."

'Yeah Thread, I doubt that's going to work, judging by the way Dave grabbed my ass,' Peeta thought.

To his surprise, all the colour seemed to drain from Gareth's face. "Okay, okay, just don't tell the pack, okay? I have a wife and kids," he said quickly. Oh right, that was why he didn't want anyone to know. Urgh, what a sleeze. The suddenly very small and pathetic wolf scrambled away, disappearing into the treeline.

Peeta feared how Thread was going to react. He was definitely going to be angry at him for making another escape. Hopefully he didn't hear him screaming for Cato either because that would make things all the more worse. His master stood over him by the altar, not making a move to free him at all. "I'd be mad at you if it weren't for the fact that I think you've learnt your lesson about running off."

Damn right he had.

Thread eventually freed him, lifting him off the stone altar and carrying him back to camp. There was a part of Peeta that felt annoyed at being back in his master's tent, the small part that had wanted Cato to come to his rescue, not Thread. But he wasn't going to run off again, that was for sure. He now knew what awaited him if he did. A pack of bloodthirsty bastards with a pervert who liked to rape his victims.

Peeta got a spanking that night for running off.

Thread had him over his knee like a child, his hand coming down onto his ass cheeks with small intervals of break. Peeta's Omega side loved it, making him release groans and pleas for more or for it to be harder. And to say things like, _'I'm a bad, bad boy who needs to be punished,'_ and _'Hit me like the tratious whore I am!'_

When he spanked him until his skin was deep red, Thread rubbed the abused skin tenderly. "Now you know what happens when you run away from me," he said.

'Yeah, sorry to burst your bubble, but I wasn't running from you,' Peeta thought.

"But Master will forgive you," Thread said, his hands massaging his pet's backside appreciatively. Peeta's face was burning with embarrassment, but the touch wasn't brutal, so he didn't mind it too much. "If you want to get out into the forest, just tell me and I can walk you, okay? Don't risk doing something that dangerous again."

"Okay," Peeta mumbled, feeling ashamed of himself.

Delly's voice came from behind the tent flap. "You wanted to see me Master Thread?" she asked.

"Yes, come in Mrs Cartwright," Thread replied. Not wishing to see his friend's reaction to the state he was in, Peeta curled himself up in Thread's lap and buried his face into his leg. There was a long pause after Delly entered and he heard her exhale deeply, the thing she did when she was fighting to keep her anger at something down.

"I suppose you want me to inform the others that you found him then?" she asked.

"That would be lovely Mrs Cartwright. And ask Cray if the brand is nearly heated," Thread answered.

Hold on, _brand_? What brand?

"Oh, it's . . ." Delly trailed off and Peeta could practically see her biting her lip anxiously. "He told me to tell you that it's ready when you are."

Thread rested his hand on the back of Peeta's head, stroking his hair affectionately. "I'll be out soon, I just want to relax him first," he said. Peeta began second guessing things, wondering if he maybe would have been better of letting Gareth voilate him. What was the brand and why the hell did he have to be relaxed for it?

Delly must have been lingering because Thread had to tell her she was dismissed before speaking to Peeta again.

"What's the brand?" Peeta asked.

His master chuckled. "Since it's unethical for me to mate you just yet, I'm going to mark my property by branding my intials onto your lower back," he explained. Peeta's eyes widened in horror. He couldn't do that! Could he? Sensing his panic, Thread shushed him gently, rubbing his back in what he properly thought was a comforting fashion. "No need to panic, baby, it will only be painful for a moment. Then it will all be over and you'll be all mine."

But he didn't want to be anyone's. He wanted to be his own person. Was that too much to ask?

Thread changed the chain that hung from his collar before standing up and taking him outside. Peeta didn't struggle like he had when Dave was dragging him to his death. He didn't see a point in that. Thread wasn't going to kill him, just mark him, so if he struggled, he'd very likely just pay for it later.

It was a clear night, all the stars were visible in the sky. Little beacons of fire lighting up the ink black night. Most of the other wolves of the pack were just going about their daily lives, feeding, talking, messing around. Peeta locked eyes with Katniss, who sat cross legged by the campfire with her head tipped back. Thom was mauling the skin of her throat, his hand buried underneath her, playing with her sex. Well, at least she'd moved on.

He also saw Madge, sitting by her tent. Since her father had died, she had been forced to leave the master's tent and live with Delly and Darius until they could find her permanant housing. She hadn't spoken a single word since her dad's death and no one forced her to do so.

Thread was actually being tender for once, sitting Peeta down beside the campfire, about a metre away from where Katniss and Thom were humping each other, and carefully pulling a long metal rod with RT shaped at the end out of the flames. Peeta's heart had started beating at a million an hour again, bruising itself against his ribcage.

Sitting down beside him, Thread took his chin and kissed his lips gently. "Only hurt for a second," he promised.

"A second?" Peeta questioned wearily. Katniss had stopped her activites and looked around at them, her lips wet and swollen. Thom didn't care, he was too busy sucking on her breasts, but Katniss looked almost hurt at what was happening.

Thread nodded, kissing him again. "Only a second." He guided the blond forward so his lips hovered over his tanned shoulder. "Bite me when it hurts. It'll elevate the pain." Peeta shut his eyes and waited, fighting to control his fear as he felt the heat of the brand tickling his skin as Thread lowered it towards his skin.

It never touched him though.

Before Thread even got close to branding him, an incredible weight banged into them both, making Peeta fall forward onto his face and sending Thread tumbling a good five metres away from him. Looking up in shock, Peeta was met by two green eyes staring down at him.

_Cato._

As a wolf, Cato was magnificent. He was tall and strong, thrice the size of Peeta himself when he was in his wolf form. Peeta barely noticed the screams of everyone in the camp, too mesmerized by the wolf from 2. Cato crouched down onto the ground, jerking his head at Peeta.

_"Get on."_

Taking a fleeting look back at Thread, who was picking himself off the ground, Peeta didn't even need to think about it this time and climbed onto Cato's back. He'd never ridden a wolf before and nearly immediately fell off again when Cato turned around and started running back the way he came. He hung on though, tightening his thighs to cling to him and winding his arms around his neck.

Cato ran _fast_. The whole forest blurred around them, morphing into a mess of green and brown. Peeta could sense the rest of his pack following them but it felt a million miles away, like they couldn't possibly reach them. Anyway, once they passed 11 territory, game over. They wouldn't dare break the boundries.

Because of Cato's amazing speed, they broke by the 11 boundrey in twice the time it took Peeta to when he ran away from him. The smell of pine sent a chill down his spine, reminding him of what nearly happened here, but it was there and gone within a second, because Cato ran around the boundrey line and made it to District 10 in ten minutes flat.

They slowed down then, since they were in no immediate danger unless someone from 10 found them in their territory. Peeta didn't worry too much about that though, since Cato had obviously done this before and knew what he was doing.

When they came to a stop, Cato crouched down again and leaned to one side, unbalancing Peeta and making him fall off. He landed on the ground with a yelp, only having a second to think things through before he was being dragged to his feet and forced against a tree.

"You scared me to death you idiot!" Cato was back in human form, his green eyes wild and full of fear. "I couldn't find you anywhere!"

Peeta opened his mouth to apologized, only to be silence by Cato's mouth. He kissed him fiercely, so firmly that his head bumped backwards into the tree. Cato's soft lips massaged his own chapped ones open, making him moan when he slipped his tongue past and explored inside his mouth.

"Don't ever scare me like that again!" Cato exclaimed when they pulled apart for air.

"I'm sorry! I just got scared!" Peeta replied. "I didn't know what to do and then those people from 11 caught me and Thread found me before Gareth raped me and brought me back and said he was going to brand me I just . . . I didn't know what I was supposed to do!"

Cato hugged him desperately, so tight that it knocked all the air from his lungs. "I never felt more helpless before in my entire life. I heard you screaming but couldn't find you anywhere," he muttered.

Peeta found himself patting the wolf's head in what he hoped was a comforting fashion. "Well, it's okay," he said, unsure of himself. "I'm here now."

Cato looked up at him hopefully. "So that means you're coming back with me?"

Peeta nodded. "Yeah, I guess it does."

**A/N: I feel like a lot of you will be celebrating now! Hooray for Cato coming to the rescue! **

**Please R&R! :D**


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